BANCROFT 

LIBRARY 

..THE.. 

CRIME  AGAINST  THE 
YAKIMAS 


By  LUCULLUS  V.  McWHORTER 


PRICE 


THIRTY-FIVE  CENTS 


BANCROFT 

LIBRARY 

..THE... 


Crime  Against  the 
Yakimas 


--BY-- 

LUCULLUS  V.  McWHORTER 
Associate  Member  of  the  Society  of  American  Indians 

WITH 

INTRODUCTION 


BY 


WILLIAM  E.  JOHNSON 
Former  Chief  Special  Officer  of  the  United  States  Indian  Service 


FIRST  EDITION 


Republic  Print,  North  Yakima,  Washington 


\/9   A  A  «• 


u.  c. 

ACADEMY   OF 

»ACIFIC  COAST 

HISTORY 


The  Crime  Against  the  Yakimas 


—  BY — 

Lucullus  V.  McWhorter 


(KZX) 


Associate   Member  of  the 
Society  of  American  Indians 


t 


To  the  Memory  of 

Ukut  Ochise  (Wild  Eye) 

The  Grey  Cayuse 

the 

Fleet  Footed  "Pard" 

of  all  Our  Rambles, 

is  this  Volume  Affectionately 

Dedicated  by  the 

Author. 


Copyrighted  1913 

By  the  Author 
All  Rights  Reserved 


INTRODUCTION 


AS  an  island  is  defined  as  a  tract  of  land  entirely  surrounded  by 
*^  water,  so  may  an  Indian  Reservation  be  described  as  a  tract  of 
land  entirely  surrounded  by  thieves. 

Too  often  the  Indian  superintendent,  or  agent,  becomes  the  agent 
and  co-partner  of  those  who  would  plunder  the  Indians  rather  than 
attend  to  his  duties  as  administrator  of  the  affairs  of  the  Indians 
themselves. 

The  blundering,  wabbling,  ofttimes  treacherous,  administration  of 
Indian  affairs,  conducted  from  a  seat  of  power  three  thousand  miles 
away,  is  the  most  sickening,  discouraging,  disgusting  failure  in  the 
history  of  American  government. 

While  the  superb,  natural  sense  of  honor  of  the  Indian  has  led  him 
to  scrupulously  observe  every  treaty  and  obligation  ever  entered 
into,  the  Government  has  left  a  trail  of  broken  treaties,  broken  prom 
ises,  repudiated  pledges — an  hundred  years  record  that  would  dis 
grace  a  king  of  the  Cannibal  Islands. 

What  ever  of  relief  has  been  obtained  for  the  Indian  has  usually 
been  through  an  appeal  from  department  red  tape  to  the  ears  and 
hearts  of  the  people.  Here  and  there  is  a  real  friend  of  the  Abo 
rigine,  who  breaks  bread  in  the  wick-i-up  ;  who  feels  the  throbbings 
of  his  heart;  who  understands  him;  who  loves  him  for  his  virtues. 
Such  a  man  is  Lucullus  V.  McWhorter,  the  writer  of  the  pages  to 
follow. 

Years  ago  McWhorter  began  mingling  with  the  Yakima  Indians. 
He  earned  their  confidence.  He  fought  their  battles.  He  aired  their 
wrongs  in  public.  He  spent  his  time  and  money  in  efforts  to  secure 
for  them  a  square  deal.  He  was  formally  adopted  into  their  tribe 
by  Chief  Yoom-tee-bee,  and  is  known  among  them  as  He-mene  Ka- 
wan  (Old  Wolf).  And,  while  he  is  an  adopted  member  of  their  tribe 
and  has  participated  in  tribal  affairs  as  a  member  of  their  council,  he 
has  never  sought  or  received  one  dollar  of  benefit  from  such  member 
ship. 

Four  years  ago,  when  I  began  operations  in  Washington,  suppress 
ing  the  liquor  traffic  among  Indians,  as  chief  officer  of  the  Indian 
service,  I  first  crossed  this  man  McWhorter 's  trail.  I  found  him  stir 
ring  them  up  to  protest  against  the  issuing  of  saloon  licenses  at  Top- 


TIIK  Clll.MK  AGAINST    INK   YAKIM  As. 


penish.  I  found  the  Indians,  under  his  influence,  protesting  against 
the  issuing  of  saloon  licenses  at  Wapato,  at  Parker  and  other  places. 
I  found  him  stirring  up  the  Yakimas  to  petition  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior,  asking  for  the  removal  of  the  white  man's  saloon  from  their 
midst. 

In  March,  1911,  a  bill  was  introduced  into  the  Washington  senate 
to  destroy  the  splendid  state  law  against  selling  liquor  to  Indians. 
The  news  came  to  me  immediately  over  the  wire  and  I  telegraphed  to 
many  persons  of  influence  in  that  state,  asking  assistance  in  defeat 
ing  the  infamous  proposal.  It  was  L.  V.  Me Whorter  who  played  the 
card  that  defeated  the  liquor  grafters.  He  rode  the  Yakima  Reser 
vation  for  two  days.  The  result  was,  that,  representing  five  hundred 
Indians,  he  sent  a  telegram  to  the  sponsor  of  the  bill  protesting  and 
imploring  that  it  be  withdrawn.  And  it  was  withdrawn,  as  the 
hundreds  of  scoundrels  who  have  since  been  convicted  under  this 
law  can  testify. 

Because  of  my  interest  in  my  own  race  as  well  as  because  of  my 
interest  in  the  Indian,  I  rejoice  that  the  following  pages  have  been 
written,  and  written  by  one  so  well  qualified  to  tell  the  sordid  story 
as  Mr.  McWhorter.  If  the  remainder  of  the  white  race  were  like 
him,  there  would  be  no  "Indian  problems." 

WILLIAM  E.  JOHNSON. 

Westerville,  Ohio,  January  13,  1913. 


Crime  Sptnsrt  tfje 

J$p  Hucullu* 


NDIAN  affairs  are  dominated  by  two  elements — rotten 
politics  and  morbid  sentimentality,"  was  the  recent  com 
ment  by  a  local  critic.  The  truth  of  the  first  accusation  is 
patent,  but  had  the  gentleman  acquainted  himself  more 
fully  with  the  unselfish  motive  which  prompts  the  com 
paratively  few  who  are  striving  to  alleviate  the  bitterness 
of  the  cup  which  has  for  centuries  been  pressed  to  the 
lips  of  our  childlike  aborigines,  he  certainly  would  not  impugn  all  to 
be  actuated  by  " morbid  sentiment."  However,  the  leaven  of  this 
force,  whether  morbid  or  otherwise,  like  all  social  and  civic  reforms, 
is  being  felt.  There  is  surely  "a  going  in  the  mulberry  trees"  for 
that  political-ridden  body  holding  guardianship  over  more  than  300,- 
000  national  wards.  Not  in  the  history  of  the  Indian  Department 
has  there  been  such  an  unearthing  of  mal-administration  and  sicken 
ing  corruption.  The  Indian  Rights  Association  and  other  eastern  so 
cieties  are  active  in  protest  against  the  criminal  neglect  and  carnival 
of  graft  which  honeycombs  this  branch  of  the  Government  service. 

The  White  Earth  tragedy,  where  the  looting  of  the  Chippewa- 
Ojebwa  amounted  to  millions  of  dollars ;  the  thievish  usurpation  by 
white  settlers  of  the  water  rights  of  the  Pimas;  and  the  wholesale 
plundering  of  the  Pueblos  under  the  administration  of  a  booze-ped 
dling  superintendent  (See  Note  1)  shielded  and  abetted  by  the  higher- 
ups,  have  at  last  caused  all  justice-loving  people  to  cry  aloud  against 
the  flagrant  wrongs  so  wantonly  inflicted  upon  the  scattered  remnant 
of  the  most  mysterious  and  interesting  race  in  existence.  Nor  do  these 
colossal  robberies  stand  alone.  Like  crimes  on  a  minor  scale  are 
being  perpetrated  on  almost,  if  not  every,  Indian  Reservation  in  the 
United  States.  "Where  the  carcass  is,  there  will  the  eagles  be  gath 
ered,"  has  been  too  grimly  palpable  in  all  our  dealings  with  weaker 
peoples. 

The  Yakima  Indian  Reservation,  Washington,  was  created  at  the 
Walla  Walla  Treaty  in  1855,  for  the  Fourteen  Confederated  Tribes, 
and  covers  approximately  1,000,000  acres  of  diversified  country,  in 
cluding  a  vast  body  of  fine  desert  lands  susceptible  to  irrigation, 
which  last  has  been  allotted  in  severally  to  the  Indians,  numbering 
3.046  souls.  About  42,000  acres  of  this  is  under  a  good  system  of  ir- 


NOTE  1.— See  "The  Story  of  Juan  Cruz,"  by  Wm.  E.   (Pussy  Foot)  Johnson,  For 
mer  Chief  Special  Officer,  U.  S.  Indian  Service,  Laurel,  Md. 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


rigation,  some  private  ditches,  the  canals  being  paid  for  by  the  In 
dians  and  by  special  appropriations  by  the  government.  Crops  are 
produced  on  10,000  acres  additional  by  sub-irrigation,  while  perhaps 
20,000  acres  of  the  allotted  lands  have  been  purchased  by  the  whites. 
This  irrigable  region,  fertile  beyond  conception  when  watered,  has 
long  been  coveted  by  the  white  man.  The  first  attempt  at  irrigation 
on  this  reservation  was  in  1859,  but  our  story  is  of  later  years. 

In  1895  the  Commercial  Club  of  North  Yakima,  Wash.,  petitioned 
Congress  to  sell  the  surplus  lands  of  the  Yakimas,  and  to  open  the 
reservation  for  settlement.  Two  years  later  Commissioners  were  sent 
to  negotiate  with  the  tribe.  It  was  estimated  that  200,000  acres  of 
land  would  suffice  for  all  allotments,  and  for  the  residue  the  Govern 
ment  offered  "unusually  liberal  terms" — $1,400,000,  deferred  p,-iy- 
ments  to  bear  four  per  cent,  interest.  The  Yakimas  spurned  this 
munificent  ( ?)  offer. 

Tt  is  well  at  this  point  to  state  that  for  years  the  Indian  Office  sold 
deceased  Indian  lands  for  the  advantage  of  the  speculator  rather  Hum 
the  actual  home-seeker.  The  undivided  allotments  were  offered  to 
the  highest  sealed  cash  bidder,  consequently  only  those  well  equipped 
could  compete;  result,  vast  and  valuable  holdings  by  a  few  «M  ex 
tremely  low  valuations. 

In  1909  I  brought  these  conditions  to  the  notice  of  the  Indian  De 
partment  and  was  promised  that  a  change  would  be  made;  that  the 
allotments  would  be  subdivided  and  sold  on  terms..  Not  until  Febru 
ary,  1911,  was  there  any  change;  since  which  time,  at  the  Indians' 
request,  terms  are  granted,  but  no  subdivisions.  It  is  well  recognized 
that  lands  in  this  valley  sell  at  higher  values  in  small  tracts.  The 
fallacy  of  the  all-cash  sales  is  apparent  when  it  is  understood  that  in 
nearly  every  case  the  money  is  doled  out  to  the  beneficiary  in  meager 
monthly  installments.  Thousands  of  dollars  have  been  lost  to  the 
Indians  by  this  criminal  stupidity  of  the  Department. 

Aside  from  the  Jones  bill,  December  21,  1904,  referred  to  elsewhere 
in  this  volume,  which  provides  for  the  opening  of  the  Reservation 
and  the  sale  and  settlement  of  unallotted  tribal  lands,  the  next  serious 
attempt  to  amputate  the  Yakimas  from  their  lands,  culminated  in  the 

Notorious  Jones  Bill 

March  6,  1906,  which  provides  that  the  irrigable  lands  of  the  Reserva 
tion  be  cared  for  by  the  United  States  Reclamation  Service.  This 
bill,  with  the  consent  of  the  Indian,  authorizes  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  to  sell  sixty  acres  of  each  eighty-acre  allotment ;  the  twenty 
acres  retained  by  the  Indian  to  be  furnished  with  a  water  right,  to 
be  paid  for  from  the  sale  of  the  sixty  acres.  After  the  payment  of 
such  water  right,  "the  balance,  if  any,  shall  be  deposited  in  the  treas 
ury  of  the  United  States,  to  the  credit  of  the  individual  Indian,  and 
may  be  paid  to  any  of  them,  if,  in  the  opinion  of  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  such  payments  will  tend  to  improve  the  condition  and  ad 
vance  the  progress  of  said  Indian,  but  not  otherwise."  Under  this 
act  the  Wapato  Project  to  water  about  120,000  acres,  was  launched. 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


The  estimated  cost  for  a  water  right  for  the  Indian's  twenty  acres,  in 
cluding  storage,  is  $30.00  per  acre. 

It  would  be  jocund,  if  it  were  not  so  tragical,  to  read  the  report  of 
the  Indian  Committee,  urging  the  passage  of  the  Jones  bill : 

"In  this  way,"  says  the  report,  "the  lands  will  be  reclaimed  and  settled  and 
the  Indian  will  have  a  good  and  perpetual  water  right  for  his  remaining  20  acres 
of  land,  which  is  more  than  he  is  apt  to  cultivate  and  is  worth  more  than  80  acres 
of  unirrigated  land.  With  an  absolute  assurance  that  a  good  water  right  can  be 
secured  the  value  of  the  66  acres  which  he  can  sell  will  be  greatly  increased. 

"Purely  agricultural  lands 
similar  in  character  to  theso 
and  in  the  same  neighborhood 
are  now  worth  from  $150  to 
$800  per  acre.  *  *  *  They 
produce  alfalfa  from  three  to 
four  crops  a  year;  hops,  a  ton 
and  a  quarter  per  acre;  pota 
toes  and  vegetables  of  all 
kinds;  the  finest  of  apples, 
peaches,  pears,  plums,  apri 
cots,  primes,  and  fruits  of  all 
kinds  other  than  tropical  or 
semitropical.  With  water  these 
lands  will  be  just  as  valuable 
and  produce  the  same  kind  of 
crops.  They  lie  adjacent  to 
the  Northern  Pacific  Railway  line. 


SUB-IRRIGATED   MEADOW. 
Yakima  Indian  Reservation. 

Well   and   Sweat   House. 
(Copyrighted    by    the    Author.) 

Climatic  conditions  are   splendid.     The  win 


ters  are  mild,  and  the  summers  have  warm  days,  pleasant  nights,  and  almost  con 
tinual  sunshine.     The  markets  of  Puget  Sound  are  but  eight  hours  distant. 

"In  this  section  the  lands  under  irrigation  are  cut  up  into  small  farms  of  from 
5  to  40  acres  each.  Many  families  own  but  10  acres,  from  which  they  make  a  good 
living  and  save  money.  If  each  Indian  were  to  take  advantage  of  this  bill  he 
would  still  retain  20  acres — that  is,  a  family  of  four  would  have  a  farm  of  80 
acres,  tt  is  a  good  thing  to  allow  the  Indians  to  dispose  of  a  portion  of  their  al 
lotments  and  thereby  surround  themselves  with  energetic,  industrious  farmers. 
They  will  be  able  to  secure  all  the  work  they  desire.  They  will  have  the  exam 
ple  and  reward  of  industry  ever  before  them,  and  if  anything  will  promote  their 
civilization  this  will  do  it.  The  bill  is  for  the  benefit  of  the  Indians,  and  will  not 
cost  the  Government  a  dollar.  Its  passage  will  also  assist  materially  in  the  de 
velopment  of  irrigation  in  the  Yakima  Valley." 

Eliminating  the  Indian  Factor. 

"After  a  careful  consideration  of  the  bill,"  wrote  Indian  Commissioner  F.  E. 
Leupp,  in  recommending  its  passage  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  "I  am  con 
vinced  that  if  it  is  enacted  the  'Indian  factor'  in  the  Yakima  Valley  project  will 
be  eliminate  (See  Note  2)  and  the  Reclamation  Service  can  carry  that  project  out." 
Louis  Mann,  a  full  blood  Yakima,  who  will  be  referred  to -of  ten  in 
this  article,  saw  in  the  local  press  the  trend  of  the  Jones  bill  and 
wrote  a  protest  to  Senator  Ankeny,  signed  jointly  by  himself  and  his 
clan  chieftain,  and  received  the  following  communication : 

NOTE  2. — Commissioner  Leupp  was  resourceful  in  methods  of  "eliminating:  the 
Indian  factor."  In  1907,  upon  his  recommendation,  By-a-lil-li  and  seven  other  Nava- 
jos  were  transported  from  the  Navajo  Reservation  to  Huachuca,  Arizona,  where, 
"without  any  charge  having  been  filed  against  them  in  any  court  of  law,  and  without 
the  benefit  of  council  or  procedure  by  due  course  of  law,  they  were  confined  in  a 
military  prison  for  an  indefinite  period  at  hard  labor."  Eighteen  months  later,  upon 
habeas  corpus  proceedings  instituted  by  the  Indian  Rights  Association,  they  were 
ordered  released  by  the  Superior  Court  of  Arizona.  (See  Senate  Document  No.  118. 
60th  Congress,  1st  Session.) 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


"House  of  Representative. 

"Mr.  Lewis  Mann,  Washington,  D.  C.,  March  21,  1906. 

"Mr.  Weyallup  Wayacika,  Indians, 

"North  Yakima,  Washington. 
"Gentlemen: 

"Your  letter  of  March  6  to  Senator  Ankeny,  protesting  against  my  bill,  has 
been  shown  to  me  by  the  Senator  and  I  cannot  believe  that  you  understand  this 
bill.  I  have  been  pressing  the  matter  more  out  of  friendship  for  the  Indians,  and 
for  the  good  it  would  be  to  them,  than  otherwise  and  I  wish  you,  or  some  one 
for  you,  would  point  out  in  what  respect  it  is  an  injury  to  you.  It  does  not  com 
pel  you  to  sell  any  of  your  land,  for  you  can  hold  your  land  just  the  same  as  you 
are  now  holding  it  and  just  as  long  as  you  live  if  you  want  to  or,  if  you  would 
prefer  it,  you  can  sell  sixty  acres  of  your  allotment.  I  have  never  heard  a  word 
of  protest  from  any  one  with  reference  to  this  bill  and  I  assure  you  that  if  you 
had  any  objection  to  it  and  had  presented  it  to  me  it  would  have  been  considered. 
I  think  that,  if  you  will  look  the  bill  over  or  have  it  explained  to  you  by  some 
one  who  will  give  you  the  real  meaning  of  it,  you  will  see  that  your  interests  have 


been  looked  after. 

This  explanation  ( ?) 
failed  to  convince  the  re 
cipients  that  Mr.  Jones 
had  "been  pressing  the 
matter  more  out  of  friend 
ship  for  the  Indians  than 
otherwise."  No  previous 
protest  had  been  made  for 
the  very  good  reason  that 
the  tribe  knew  nothing  of 
this  philanthropic  move, 
nor  had  they  a  white 
friend  sufficiently  interest 
ed  in  their  welfare  to  ap 
prise  them  of  the  impend 
ing  danger  To  this  day  the 
primary  influence  which 
prompted  Mr.  Jones  to  ex 
ert  himself  so  munificently 
in  their  behalf  is  an  un 
solved  mystery  to  the 
YaHmas.  Chief  Saluskin, 
We-owikt,  a  primitive  pa 
gan,  said:  "I  hear  that 
Jones  made  speech  in 
Congress  and  told:  'We 
will  make  Christians  of 
the  Yakimas;  they  must 
do  heap  praying  and 
twenty  acres  is  all  they 
will  have  time  to  work.'  ! 

The    true    incentive    to 
the  Jones  bill  is  found  in 


"Respectfully  yours, 

"W.  L.  JONES.' 


CHIEF    SA-LUSKIN    WE-OWIKT.    1911. 

"My    Father   was    once    chief    of    all    this 

country  and  my  tribe  was  strong." 

(Copyrighted    by    the    Author.) 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


a  study  of  the  correspondence  of  that  period  on  file  in  the  Indian  Of 
fice.  The  Reclamation  Service  wanted  a  foothold  in  the  Yakima  Res 
ervation,  but  the  unsettled  condition  of  the  water  rights  of  the  In 
dians  was  a  stumbling  block. 

Beginning  at  Union  Gap,  the  Yakima  river  bounds  the  Reservation 
on  the  east  a  distance  of  about  forty  miles.  Notwithstanding  that  the 
treaty  of  1855  "secures"  to  the  confederated  tribes  and  bands  of  In 
dians  "the  exchisive  right  of  taking  fish  in  all  the  streams  running 
through  or  bordering  said  Reservation,"  this  recognition  of  the  pri 
ority  right  of  the  Yakimas  to  this  stream  avails  them  nothing.  The 
Reclamation  Service  refers  to  the  Indians'  contention  for  irrigation 
water  as '"vague  claims." 

In  1891  the  Northern  Pacific,  Kittitas  and  Yakima  Irrigation  Com 
pany  began  constructing  a  dam  across  the  Yakima  river  some  three 
miles  below  Union  Gap  for  the  purpose  of  diverting  water  to  a  canal 
irrigating  a  large  tract  of  land  northeast  of  this  stream.  Under  date 
of  October  8,  1891,  Major 
Jay  Lynch,  then  Indian 
Agent  for  the  Yakima  Reser 
vation,  wired  the  Indian 
Commissioner  notice  of  this 
infringement  of  the  rights  of 
the  Yakimas,  not  only  ap 
propriating  water  which 
was  rightfully  theirs,  but 
also  seriously  interfering 
with  their  fishing  rights.  On 
Nov.  17,  1891,  the  Acting 
Commissioner  advised  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior  of 
the  probable  effect  of  this  di 
version  dam,  and  recom 
mended  that  the  District  At 
torney  for  the  State  of 
Washington  make  a  full  in 
vestigation  and  institute 
suits,  J.L  necessary,  for  in 
fringement  on  the  Indian 
Rights,  stop  the  construction 
of  the  dam  and  have  it  re 
moved.  However,  no  steps 
were  taken  to  stay  the  erec 
tion  of  this  dam,  which  was  in  gross  violation  of  the  Go vermnent '.« 
treaty  obligation  to  protect  its  dependent  wards.  In  consequence, 
practically  the  entire  flow  of  the  Yakima  river  during  the  vital  irri 
gating  season  is  diverted  to  this  alien  canal  and  the  Indians  are  com 
pelled  to  buy  storage  water  from  the  Reclamation  Service,  or  lose 


MAJOR  JAY  LYNCH 

Photo   during   incumbency   as   Yakima 

Indian   Agent. 


10 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 

heavily  on  their  crops.  This  piracy  has  greatly  retarded  the  devel 
opment  of  their  lands,  leaving  thousands  of  acres  in  sagebrush  that 
are  accessible  to  the  canals  already  constructed. 

"Killing"  the  Waneto  Slough. 

A  short  distance  below  this  dam  was  a  stream  of  some  magnitude, 
known  as  the  Waneto  Slough,  running  from  the  Yakima  river  across 
the  Reservation  valley  to  Toppenish  creek  on  the  south.  Several 
Indians  and  a  few  white  renters  had  built  laterals  along  this  stream, 
conducting  water  to  a  considerable  body  of  land.  Except  at  the  time 
of  the  spring  floods,  this  branch  of  the  Yakima  river  has  been  dry 
since  the  construction  of  the  dam,  entailing  loss  and  misery  to  the 
allottees  with  no  hope  of  redress.  A  few  years  prior,  when  the 
Northern  Pacific  Railroad  was  built  across  the  Reservation,  this 
stream,  or  creek,  was  bridged,  permitting  the  unobstructed  flow  of 
the  water.  Subsequently,  to  obviate  the  expense  of  maintaining  this 
bridge,  the  railroad  company  proceeded  to  fill  the  channel  with  earth. 
Mr.  Lynch  protested  on  the  ground  that  it  was  a  natural  stream  from 
which  water  had  been  appropriated  by  the  Indians  for  irrigation  pur 
poses.  The  railroad  company  desisted  and  the  bridge  is  still  there. 

In  1894  the  Northern  Pacific,  Kittitas  and  Yakima  Irrigation  Com 
pany  went  into  the  hands  of  a  receiver  and  was  reorganized  as  the 
Washington  Irrigation  Company,  since  which  time  its  canal  has  been 
known  as  the  Sunnyside  Canal. 

In  1897  the  intake  of  the  two  main  Reservation  canals  provided  for 
314  cubic  feet  per  second.  Their  combined  length,  15.47  miles,  with 
13.66  miles  of  laterals,  covered  30,000  acres.  Waneto  Slough  provided 
for  200  cubic  feet  per  second,  making  a  total  of  514  second  feet.  (Re 
port  of  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs,  1897,  L.  T.  Erwin,  Agent.) 

With  additional  laterals  from  these  various  sources  fully  50,000 
acres  of  the  very  best  soil  can  be  irrigated. 

On  Feb.  19,  1903,  in  addition  to  the  riparian  rights  of  the  Yakimas, 
Mr.  Lynch,  under  the  State  laws,  filed  on  1,000  cubic  feet  per  second 
flow  of  water  at  Union  Gap  for  the  use  of  the  Reservation  lands. 

In  1904  a  move  was  on  foot  to  transfer  the  Sunnyside  Canal  to  the 
United  States  under  the  Reclamation  Service.  On  May  4,  1905, 
this  bureau  withdrew  the  unappropriated  waters  of  the  Yakima  river 
under  the  State  Water  Appropriation  Law  of  March  5,  1905.  In  Au 
gust,  1905,  the  Reclamation  engineers  made  an  estimate  of  the  low 
water  flow  jn  the  Yakima  river  at  Union  Gap,  showing  a  minimum  of 
793  cubic  feet  per  second.  The  flow  in  the  Sunnyside  canal  and  the 
Reservation  canals,  including  Waneto  Slough,  were  also  measured. 
The  result  is  here/given : 

Amount  diverted  Amount  diverted 

Aug.,  1904  Aug.,  1905. 

Sunnyside  Canal 605  cu.  ft.  per  second     624  cu.  ft.  per  second 

Reservation  Canals 226  cu.  ft.  per  second     269  cu.  ft.  per  second 

This  table  is  from  the  Fourth  Annual  Report  of  the  Reclamation 
Service,  1904-5. 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 11 

Below  are  given  figures  by  the  same  bureau  in  its  Fifth  Annual  Re 
port,  1906: 

Average  diversion        Flow  latter  part  of 
Aug.,  1905.  Aug.,  1905. 

Sunnyside  Canal 626  cu.  ft.  per  second     650  cu.  ft.  per  second 

Reservation  Canals 269  cu.  ft.  per  second     147  cu.  ft.  per  second 

In  this  second  report,  covering  the  same  period,  a  new  column  of 
figures  appears  wherein  the  Sunnyside  canal  gained  24  second  feet  of 
water  while  the  Reservation  canals  lost  122  second  feet.  By  what 
process  of  legerdemain  this  result  was  evolved,  we  leave  for  the  Re 
clamation  Service  experts  in  mathematical  jugglery  to  explain. 

It  is  noted  that  the  flow  in  the  Reservation  canals  is  reported  as  a 
unit;  but  were  they. 

Compared  with  Agent  Erwin's  report  in  1897,  they  were  not;  and 
the  figures  of  the  Reclamation  Service  are  false.  In  any  event,  as 
previously  shown,  the  Waneto  Slough  was  dry  from  the  diversion  by 
the  Sunnyside  canal  at  the  time  of  this  measurement;  nor  are  some 
private  ditches  included.  In  the  report  for  1904,  for  the  evident 
purpose  of  detracting  attention  from  the  purloining  of  its  waters,  this 
stream  is  called 

"Gilbert's  Canal." 

Mr.  H.  M.  Gilbert,  a  prominent  commission  merchant  and  Reserva 
tion  real  estate  broker,  had  leased  and  irrigated  lands  from  this 
slough,  and,  as  will  hereafter  be  seen,  was  conspicuous  in  fighting  for 
the  Reclamation  Service  in  the  Reservation.  Mr.  Lynch,  under  date 
of  February  3,  1906,  called  the  attention  of  the  Indian  Office  to  this 
grossly  fallacious  modern  name,  showing  that  the  stream  is  a  natural 
one ;  and  that  the  Indians  were  suffering  because  of  the  misappro 
priation  of  its  water  by  the  Washington  Irrigation  Company.  He 
warned  the  office  that  unless  the  natural  flow  was  restored,  litigation 
was  likely  to  follow.  No  attempt  has  ever  been  made  to  have  the 
stolen  water  returned  to  this  per  white  man  "Gilbert's  Canal." 

In  1905,  in  accordance  with  an  agreement  or  silent  acquiescence  of 
the  Indian  Department,  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  adjudicated  the 
water  rights  of  the  Indians  and  the  Washington  Irrigation  Company 
on  the  basic  figures  of  the  "magic  column"  appearing  in  the  Report 
of  the  Reclamation  Service,  1906,  previously  cited.  He  "tacitly" 
gave  to  the  irrigation  company  650  cubic  feet,  which  is  sufficient  to 
irrigate  approximately  60,000  acres,  and  generously  conceded  the  147 
cubic  feet  to  the  Indians,  which  will  irrigate  not  to  exceed  12,000 
acres.  This  ruling  seems  all  the  more  criminal  when  we  realize  that 
the  Sunnyside  canal  at  that  time  covered  only  60,000  acres,  since  in 
creased  to  100,000  acres,  which  is  all  the  land  available;  while  the 
Wapato  Project  embraces  120,000  acres. 

On  the  Ahtanum,  a  boundary  stream  tributary  to  the  Yakima,  the 
Indians  were  permitted  to  retain  only  a  fourth  of  the  low  water  flow, 
leaving  the  old  Indian  ditches  constructed  some  thirty  years  previous 
ly,  entirely  dry.  Complaint  to  the  department  avails  them  nothing. 


12 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 

Justice  had  no  component  part  in  this  " dividing  of  the  waters"  of 
the  Yakima.  It  was  in  reality  an  official  confirmation  of  the  theft  of 
the  Reservation  waters,  amounting  to  undetermined  millions  of  dol1- 
lars.  This  "adjustment"  was  regarded  as  final  and  a  strong 
score  for  the  Reclamation  Service  in  foisting  upon  the  Gov 
ernment  in  a  very  questionable  deal  —  the  taking  over  of  the  Sunny- 
side  canal.  The  Interior  Department  could  not,  however,  consider 
this  purchase  until  a  "clear  slate"  for  the  Reclamation  Service  on 
the  Yakima  Reservation  was  apparent,  and  to  this  end  the  Jones  bill, 
March  6,  1906,  was  formulated  and  passed.  On  the  27th  day  of  the 
same  month  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  closed  the  contract  which 
had  been  drawn  the  previous  year,  for  the  Sunnyside  canal  in  the 
sum  of  $250,000  cash  and  a  retained  water  right  for  9,000  acres  then 
supposed  to  be  under  irrigation,  which,  however,  materialized  only 
7,000  acres. 

Mr.  Lynch  bitterly  opposed  this  move.  Under  date  of  February  3, 
1906,  he  sent  a  lengthy  protest  to  Mr.  W.  H.  Code,  (See  Note  No.  3) 
Inspector  of  Indian  Service,  and  to  the  Commissioner  of  Indian  Af 
fairs.  He  said  in  part : 

"The  Yakima  River  is  a  boundary  stream  and  the  treaty  gives  certain  ex 
clusive  rights  to  this  stream  to  the  Indians,  and  must  necessarily  give  the  United 
States  exclusive  jurisdiction  and  control  of  the  waters  of  this  stream.  The  Wash 
ington  Irrigation  Co.,  the  largest  user  of  water  on  the  river,  has  constructed  a 
dam  across  the  Yakima  River  upon  Indian  lands,  and  have  appropriated  a  large 
amount  of  water  under  the  state  law.  without  any  act  of  Congress  granting  them 
this  right  or  privilege,  when  in  fact  the  state  had  disclaimed  any  jurisdiction  over 
it,  (See  Note  4)  and  it  was  and  is  impossible  for  this  company  to  secure  any  right 
or  title  without  an  act  of  Congress,  and  they  now  propose  to  sell  to  the  U.  S.  their 
plant  and  water  rights.  I  think  it  would  be  well  for  the  Government  to  investigate 
their  title  to  water  and  dam  before  they  purchase  from  this  company."  *  * 

"As  stated  in  my  former  letter,  I  do  not  think  the  Jones  Bill  as  now  pending 
makes  a  clear  slate,  nor  attempts  to  say  what  water  rights  the  Indians  have,  or 
how  much  storage  they  will  require,  which  is  all  a  matter  of  guess,  and  if  not  de 
termined  now,  it  will  have  to  be  settled  some  time,  probably  by  the  courts." 

Upon  the  consummation  of  the  sale  of  the  Sunnyside  canal,  the 
Reclamation  Service  entered  the  reservation  and  proceeded  to  survey 
and  map  out  the  "Wapato  Project,"  including  storage  dams  in  the 
mountains.  This  work  was  completed  in  two  years  at  a  cost  of  about 
$36,000,  and  early  in  1908  Mr.  Lynch  was  importuned  by  the  Indian 
Department  and  local  promoters  as  to  the  probable  outcome  of  secur 
ing  the  Indians'  signatures  to  contracts  for  water  rights.  He  was 
urged  to  do  all  in  his  power  to  insure  success.  Mr.  H.  M.  Gilbert,  the 
henchman  of  the  Reclamation  Service,  wrote  him  that  he  understood 
that  the  matter  of  watering  the  Reservation  was  up  to  his  getting  the 
consent  of  the  Indians.  "I  had  understood,"  he  continues,  "that  the 


NOTE  3. — Mr.  Code,  then  Acting  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Indian  Service,  disclaims 
any  part  in  the  "adjudication"  of  the  Reservation  boundary  waters.  The  division 
was  made  arbitrarily  and  without  his  consent.  As  a  substance  of  fact,  Mr.  Code 
was,  at  the  time,  Consulting  Engineer  for  the  Reclamation  Service. 

NOTE  4. — Art.  XXVI  of  the  Constitution  of  the  State  of  Washington,  reads: 
"That  the  people  inhabiting  this  state  do  agree  and  declare  that -they  forever  dis 
claim  all  right  and  title  to  the  unappropriated  public  lands  lying  within  the  bounda 
ries  of  this  state,  and  to  all  lands  lying  within  said  limits  owned  or  held  by  a  in- 
Indian  or  Indian  tribes;  and  that  until  the  title  thereto  shall  have  been  extinguished 
by  the  United  States,  the  same  shall  be  and  remain  subject  to  the  disposition  of  the 
United  States." 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS.  13 

Secretary  of  the  Interior  was  authorized  to  sign  contracts  for  this 
water  for  the  Indians  as  wards  of  the  government."  He  criticised 
Mr.  Lynch  for  the  delay.  Mr.  Lynch  had  vainly  tried  to  ascertain 
the  probable  cost  of  the  Wapato  Project,  but  true  to  the  "gum  shoe" 
policy  of  the  Reclamation  Service,  this  information  was  withheld. 

In  a  letter  dated  June  8,  1908,  to  the  Indian  Commissioner,  Mr. 
Lynch  says : 

"I  believe  that  your  Office  as  well  as  this  office  has  always  contended  and  be 
lieved  that  the  Reservation  is  justly  entitled  to  a  good  portion  of  the  natural  flow 
of  the  Yakima  River,  it  being  a  boundary  stream  of  the  Reservation,  and  if  we 
have  such  a  right  now  is  the  time  to  contend  for  it  and  it  seems  unjust  to  the 
Indians  that  the  proceeds  of  the  sale  of  their  land  should  be  expended  in  the  con 
struction  of  reservoirs  to  furnish  water.  It  is  my  opinion  that  if  they  are  en 
titled  to  even  one-half  of  the  flow  of  the  Yakima  River,  they  would  not  need  any 
storage  water  or  have  any  use  for  reservoirs  and  dams." 

Again,  under  date  of  June  11,  1908,  he  wrote  the  Commissioner : 
"It  may  be  useless  to  contend  for  any  more  of  the  flow  of  the  Yakima  River 
than  the  Reclamation  Service  feel  disposed  to  allow  the  Reservation,  but  the  divi 
sion  which  they  seem  to  think  is  settled  upon  certainly  seems  to  me  to  be  unfair 
and  unjust  and  I  am  at  a  loss  to  understand  upon  what  basis  any  such  division 
could  be  based,  and  if  we  have  to  accept  it,  it  means  that  the  reservation  lands 
must  bear  nearly  all  of  the  cost  of  the  construction  of  dams  for  storage  which 
will  probably  be  somewhere  between  $1,000,000  and  $2,000,000,  just  how  much  no 
one  at  this  time  seems  to  know. 

"I  doubt  very  much  whether  the  natural  flow  of  the  Yakima  River  can  be  le 
gally  taken  from  the  reservation  and  these  Indians  deprived  of  their  treaty  rights 
without  an  act  of  Congress  and  perhaps  even  an  act  of  Congress  could  not  deprive 
the  owners  of  land  of  rights  they  were  legally  possessed  of.  However,  it  is  not 
my  intention  to  argue  this  matter,  but  the  Reclamation  Service  will  find  that  they 
are  going  to  have  a  great  deal  of  trouble  in  securing  contracts  for  the  Wapato 
Project  on  the  basis  of  the  division  as  stated  in  the  enclosed  letter." 

The  Jones  Bill  a  "Gold  Brick." 

Under  date  of  June  20,  1908,  he  continues : 

"I  have  always  understood  from  Mr.  Code  that  the  matter  of  the  division  of 
the  water  of  the  Yakima  River  was  not  entirely  settled  upon  and  that  he  had 
never  recommended  or  agreed  to  a  division  as  claimed  by  the  Reclamation  Ser 
vice,  and  to  tell  the  truth  I  have  always  felt  that  the  delegation  in  Congress  from 
this  state  and  the  Reclamation  Service  in  recommending  the  buying  of  the  Sun- 
nyside  Canal  recommended  that  the  government  purchase  something,  especially  in 
the  way  of  the  Sunnyside  water  right  and  dam,  that  they  already  owned  or  held 
in  trust  for  the  Indians.  The  Secretary  had  stated  prior  to  the  approval  of  this 
purchase  that  they  must  show  a  clear  slate  as  to  the  water  rights  and  especially 
as  to  the  Yakima  Indian  Reservation,  and  the  bill  known  as  the  Jones  Bill,  placing 
the  reservation  lands  under  the  Reclamation  Project,  was  largely  in  the  nature  of 
a  gold  brick  passed  up  to  the  Secretary  to  make  him  think  there  was  a  clear 
slate,  and  as  soon  as  the  Sunnyside  property  was  purchased  it  was  generally  ad 
mitted  by  the  Reclamation  Service,  as  well  as  others,  that  this  bill  could  not  be 
put  into  effect  or  operation  without  some  amendments  and  the  amendments  that 
the  Reclamation  Service  want  and  are  trying  to  get  is  that  the  Secretary  be 
authorized  to  dispose  of  60  acres  of  their  land  in  accordance  with  the  Jones  bill 
without  the  consent  of  the  Indians,  at  least  their  attorney  so  informed  me  that 
they  were  trying  to  get  such  an  act  passed  by  Congress.  There  was  a  law  passed 
(See  Note  5)  opening  the  Reservation  and  the  Indians  were  not  consulted  nor  their 

NOTE  5. — Act  of  December  21,  1904.  Bill  introduced  by  Congressman  W.  L,.  Jones. 
See  Note  7,  this  volume.  Act  of  December  21,  1904.  Bill  introduced  by  Congressman 
W.  L.  Jones.  See  Note  7,  this  volume. 


14 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 

consent  given  and  they  naturally  feel  pretty  sore  about  this  matter  and  on  account 
of  the  feeling  existing  on  this  account  it  makes  it  pretty  hard  to  talk  with  them 
about  getting  their  consent  on  any  question.  This  irrigation  matter  is  not  a  ques 
tion  for  council  but  the  individual  Indians  have  to  be  dealt  with,  and  they  as  a  rule 
are  so  ignorant  about  such  matters  and  many  of  them  can't  even  talk  the  Eng 
lish  language,  that  it  is  not  going  to  be  an  easy  task  to  get  their  consent  and  if 
a  success  is  made  of  the  matter  it  must  be  done  by  some  person  who  has  had  some 
experience  in  dealing  with  Indians  and  who  can  give  the  matter  his  whole  time 
and  attention." 

It  was  evident  that  Mr.  Lynch  was  not  in  harmony  with  this  gi 
gantic  steal;  and  upon  refusing  to  be  transferred,  or  to  resign,  he 
was,  on  January  1,  1909,  "suspended"  from  office  and  Mr.  S.  A.  M. 
Young  installed  in  his  place.  This  gentleman  was  then  in  perfect 
accord  with  the  coalition  of  the  Reclamation  Service  and  the  Indian 
Department,  and  the  following  spring  was  marked  by  general  activ 
ity  along  the  entire  line.  The  final  coup  of  securing  the  Indians'  con 
sent  to  the  selling  of  his  sixty  acres  was  at  hand. 

The  Yakimas  as  a  unit  knew  nothing  of  the  import  of  the  Jones  bill 
until  I  explained  it  to  them  at  a  council  called  by  the  late  Chief 
Yoom-tee-bee,  June  9,  1909.  In  this  council  a  petition  to  the  Indian 
Commissioner  for  a  redress  of  various  grievances  was  formulated, 
from  which  the  following  is  copied : 

"Complaint  6.  Regarding  the  disposal  of  sixty  acres  of  the  allotted  eighty,  the 
Indians  think  that  they  should  be  permitted  to  retain  at  least  one-half  of  their 
eighty  acres,  and  hope  for  an  amendment  to  the  Act  in  question,  to  that  effect. 

"They  realize  that  the  white  man  can  hold  forty  acres  under  the  government 
irrigation  system,  on  the  Tieton  near  North  Yakima,  and  they  feel  the  injustice 
of  any  legislation  which  compels  them  to  relinquish,  or  dispose  of,  three-fourths  of 
their  land,  under  pain  of  being  deprived  of  all  water  rights." 

"Twenty  Acres  Enough  for  an  Indian." 

I  also  wrote  Senator  Jones : 

"The  Indians  feel  that  they  have  not  been  justly  treated  in  this  matter.  *  * 
Many  of  them  have  constructed  private  ditches  and  have  their  lands  under  culti 
vation.  They  were  encouraged  to  do  this,  believing  that  such  improvements  would 
be  permanent,  and  that  the  water  was  theirs  and  would  never  be  taken  from 
them. 

"They  now  hope  for  an  amendment  to  the  act  in  question,  which  will  permit 
them  to  hold  forty  acres  instead  of  twenty,  and  are  looking  to  you  to  champion 
their  cause.  This  is  not  an  unreasonable  request,  and  we  trust  that  you  will  do 
all  in  your  power  to  accomplish  this  end.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the 
Yakimas  are  not  a  generation  from  the  'hunter  state'  and  are  wholly  incapable 
of  the  scientific  farming  so  absolutely  necessary  for  a  livelihood  on  a  twenty-acre 
tract. 

"Under  the  conditions  now  being  forced  upon  him,  he  can  never  hold  his  own 
with  the  resourceful  white  man  whose  greed  and  avarice  seem  to  be  insatiate." 

Mr.  Jones  replied : 

"There  will  be  no  possibility  of  passing  any  legislation  of  this  kind  amending 
the  act  permitting  the  sale  of  60  acres  at  the  present  session  of  Congress,  nor  do 
I  think  it  possible  to  pass  it  at  any  time.  The  Indian  does  not  have  to  sell  any 
of  his  allotment  if  he  does  not  want  to  do  so,  and  knownig  as  much  about  the 
Indian  and  irrigation  as  you  do,  I  am  satisfied  you  will  agree  with  me  that  20 
acres  of  irrigated  land  is  about  all  any  Indian  would  be  able  to  properly  man;i<_n> 
and  if  he  can  sell  the  60  acres  and,  out  of  the  proceeds  get  a  water  right  for  the 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 15 

remaining  20  acres  and  still  have  a  little  surplus  remaining  to  help  him  along,  it 
seems  to  me  he  ought  to  be  in  pretty  good  shape." 

In  March,  prior  to  this,  I  had,  at  the  instance  of  Chief  Yoom-tee- 
bee,  forwarded  to  the  Indian  Office  a  protest  similar  to  the  foregoing, 
to  which  the  Commissioner  replied  under  date  May  7,  1909 : 

"The  Office  believes  that  twenty  acres  of  irrigable  land  on  the  Yakima  Reser 
vation  is  ample  for  the  needs  of  any  allottee,  and  that  the  sale  of  the  larger 
quantity  will  enable  him  to  make  better  use  of  the  twenty  acres  retained. 

"Special  Agent  Charles  E.  Roblin,  has  been  detailed  to  the  Yakima  Reserva 
tion  to  explain  to  the  Indians  the  purport-  of  the  legislation,  and  to  endeavor  to 
obtain  from  them  petitions  for  the  sale  of  -the  excess  lands. 

"Mr.  Roblin  has  the  confidence  of  the  Y  akima  Indians  and  is  the  person  best 
fitted  to  deal  with  them  in  this  matter." 

Mr.  Roblin  had  acted  as  chief  clerk  of  the  Yakima  Agency,  and  the 
Indians  were  very  well  acquainted  with  him.  To  the  surprise  of  the 
Indian  Office,  his  efforts  fell  flat.  But  few  Indians  could  be  induced 
to  sign.  Mr.  Roblin  was  later  removed  and  has  since  figured  in  the 
Pima  water  scandals  in  Arizona. 

In  the  latter  part  of  July,  1909,  the  opposition  of  the  allottees  to 
the  undertaking  became  so  manifest  that  Mr.  C.  F.  Hauke,  then 
chief  clerk  of  the  Indian  Office,  visited  the  Reservation  to  ascertain 
the  hindering  cause.  He  soon  expressed  his  belief  that  there  was 
"some  outside  influence  at  work  among  the  Indians." 

It  is  true  that  simultaneous  with  Mr.  Roblin 's  advent,  that  Wild 
Eye,  the  Grey  Cayuse,  and  rider  was  hitting  the  Reservation  trails 
hard,  creating  a  dust  which  proved  a  veritable  hoodoo  to  that 
worthy's  most  strenuous  efforts  at  collecting  Indian  autographs. 


YAKIMA  INDIAN  HUNTERS,    1912. 

Breaking   Camp   on   the  Desert.— Wild   Eye,    "The   Grey   Cayuse." 
(Copyrighted  by  the  Author.) 

The  promoters  of  the  "Wapato  canal  were  now  in  despair.  They 
saw  their  pet  scheme  of  "civilizing"  the  half  hunter,  half  pastoral 
Yakima  by  confining  him  to  a  twenty-acre  garden  among"  a  dense 
population  of  "energetic  and  industrious"  white  farmers,  go  glim- 


irt 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


mering.  Something  should  be  done  for  the  "poor  Indian";  so,  in 
July,  1909,  Mr.  Gilbert,  the  Reservation  real  estate  broker,  and  two 
associates,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Commercial  Club  of  Toppeuish, 
a  Reservation  town,  advocated  in  the  press  and  petitioned  the  Secre 
tary  of  the  Interior : 

"That  it  would  be  better  to  follow  the  advice  of  former  Commissioner  Leupp 
and  give  such  Indians  as  do  not  want  to  take  advantage  of  the  Jones  bill,  pat 
ents  in  fee  simple  and  treat  the  allotted  Indians  as  they  really  are,  American 
citizens." 

This,  when  interpreted,  reads:  "Then  the  white  man  with  much 
booze  and  very  little  money  will  speedily  'eliminate'  the  'Indian 
factor'  from  the  Yakima  Valley  forever." 

Great  scheme  !  (See 
Note  6.)  I  took  exceptions, 
which  at  once  made  appar 
ent  the  source  of  the  '  *  out 
side  influence  at  work 
among  the  Yakimas."  I 
was  then  approached  by 
Mr.  Gilbert  with  a  modi 
fied  form  of  contract,  or 
petition,  empowering  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior 
to  "dispose  of  such  lands 
of  above  described  allot 
ment  as  may  be  neces 
sary,"  for  a  water  right  in 
the  proposed  irrigation 
sytsem.  He  urged  that  the 
entire  improvement  could 
be  paid  for  from  the  sale 
of  timber  and  unallotted 
lands,  which  are  to  be 
sold  under  the  Jones  Act 
of  December  21,  1904. 
This  I  then  believed,  and 
still  deem  feasible,  and  I 
could  see  no  justice  in  the 
Government 's  exacting 
further  security  from  its 
wards  which  places  them 
at  the  mercy  of  unscrupu 
lous  landsharks. 

However,  notwithstand 
ing     that     this     petition 
when  signed,  authorizes  the  sale  of  sixty  acres  of  each  allotment  if 
"necessary"  and  that  great  abuses  were  likely  to  result  to  the  detri- 


BILI.Y   STAHAI    (1911). 

Sub-Chief  and   Councilman. 

'Me-yay-wah     (God)     created    the    water 

for  all." 
(Copyrighted    by    the    Author.) 


NOTE  6. — The  Reservation  Real  Estate  Broker  proved  an  eager  follower  of  the 
humane  (?)  Leupp.  who,  in  1908.  advocated  and  urged  Congress  to  pass  an  act  repu 
diating  all  treatv  stipulations  wherein  the  Government  holds  in  trust  for  a  period  of 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


17 


ment  of  the  Indian,  I  felt  that  it  was  a  losing  game  for  the  tribe  to 
let  its  lands  remain  idle;  that  the  white  man  was  gradually  absorb 
ing  them  at  speculative  prices — this  coupled  with  the  statement  to 
me  by  one  in  the  game,  that  "Within  five  years  the  white  man  will 
have  such  control  as  to  enable  him  to  build  the  canal  regardless  of 
the  Indians'  consent";  from  another,  that  "The  Indian  may  as  well 
understand  at  once  that  the  government  will  build  this  canal  whether 


WILLIAM  CHARLEY. 

Interpreter   (1912). 
(Copyrighted    by    the    Author.) 

the  Indians  want  it  or  not."  All  this  considered,  I  deemed  it  just  as 
well  at  that  time  for  the  allottees  to  sign  and  take  chances. 

I  accordingly  called  the  tribe  in  council  and  had  the  import  of  the 

twenty-five  years,  the  patent  of  an  allottee;  and  to  authorize  the  Secretary  of  the 
Inferior,  "at  his  discretion,"  to  issue  to  any  Indian  who  may  refuse  to  send  his  chil 
dren  to 'school,  or  any  Indian  who  persists  in  drunkenness,  a  patent  in  fee  simple  for 
his  land,  and  leave  him  "to  take  care  of  himself  as  best  he  can." — (See  House  Docu 
ment  No.  790,  60th  Congress,  1st  Session.  > 

This  would  place  beyond  the  protection  of  the  Government  the  most  ignorant  and 
the  most  helpless  class  of  Indians,  leaving  them  a  ready  prey  to  that  law-defying 
combination,  the  bootlegger  and  the  land  grabber. 


18 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 

new  petition  fully  explained.  The  Indians  hesitated.  They  could  not 
understand  this  sudden  interest  of  the  white  man  in  the  welfare  of 
his  despised  red  brother.  Why  had  the  petition  been  changed  ?  Was 
not  an  amendment  to  the  Jones  bill  refused?  There  must  be  some 
trap?  Louis  Mann  wrote  me,  "If  Mr. 

Indians  Are  Squeezed  to  Hell 

they  will  never  give  no  consent  to  their  allotments  be  sold  as  the 
Jones  bill  is.  This  is  no  fooling  among  my  nation  of  Yakima  Indians. 
I  am  in  earnest ;  I  have  been  talking  to  my  people  and  every  one  con 
cerned  do  not  wish  none  of  that  business. ' ' 

It  was  arranged  for  the  Indian  council  to  meet  the  Hon.  R.  A.  Bal 
linger,  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  in  North  Yakima,  the  evening  of 
August  24,  1909.  In  the  interval  it  was  highly  desirous  that  some 
showing  of  actual  work  be  presented  to  the  Secretary  upon  his  ar 
rival;  and  with  this  in  view,  Mr.  Gilbert  proposed  to  William  Charley, 
a  full  blood  Indian,  and  the  writer,  that  if  said  William  Charley 
would  come  to  his  office  in  Toppenish  and  act  as  interpreter  in  secur 
ing  signatures  to  these  new  petitions,  he  would  place  all  such  petitions 
in  his  fire  safe  "until  the  Indians  are  entirely  satisfied  to  have  them 
sent  to  Washington,"  but  if  at  any  time  the  Indians  were  not  satis 
fied,  he  would  upon  our  request,  surrender  the  petitions  to  be  de 
stroyed. 

With  this  understanding  William  Charley  began  work,  and  secured 
several  signatures  to  the  petitions,  which  were  left  in  the  gentleman's 
care  as  agreed.  The  Indians  were  never  fully  satisfied  with  this  work, 
and  afterwards  we  made  a  written  demand  for  the  return  of  the  pe 
titions  in  question,  which  demand  was  silently  ignored.  We  were 
trapped.  The  gentleman  bailed  to  keep  his  word  of  honor. 

Indian  Council  Meets  Secretary  Ballinger. 

The  Indian  Council  convened  at  my  house  August  24,  1909,  and 
completed  a  petition  which  was  in  part  prepared  at  a  previous  coun 
cil,  to  Mr.  Ballinger,  setting  forth  some  of  their  grievances  and  pray 
ing  for  relief,  which  never  came.  Owing  to  the  death  of  a  relative, 
Chief  Yoom-tee-bee  did  not  attend  this  council.  Two  orators, 
Chiefs  Meninock  and  Shut-to-monen  (Charley  Wesley)  were  chosen  to 
lay  before  the  Secretary,  the  Council's  view  of  the  proposed  Wapato 
-  canal,  through  William  Charley  as  interpreter.  Superintendent 
Young,  a  few  Indian  and  Reclamation  Service  officials,  including  Mr. 
Gilbert,  and  others,  were  present. 

Chief  Meninock  spoke  briefly,  setting  forth  their  right  to  one  half 
of  the  water  in  the  Yakima  river.  He  referred  to  the  treaty  of  1855 
to  which  his  father  was  a  signer;  that  they  had  tried  to  live  up  to 
their  part  of  this  compact  and  that  the  whites  should  do  likewise.  He 
plead  earnestly  that  they  be  not  further  wronged  by  the  government ; 
that  they  be  permitted  to  retain  all  their  lands,  which  they  loved  as  an 
ancestral  heritage.  The  Indians  did  not  want  to  sell  any  of  their  land. 

Mr.  Ballinger  turned  to  the  interpreter  and  said:    "Tell  him  that 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS.  19 


they  do  not  have  to  sell  any  of  their  land.  I  will  water  it  and  let 
them  keep  it  all." 

Surprised  and  angered  at  such  a  mendacious  statement,  I  inter 
posed :  "Excuse  me,  Mr.  Secretary,  but  if  the  Indians  sign  the  peti 
tion  in  question,  can  you  not  sell  up  to  sixty  acres  of  each  allotment 
so  watered  if  necessary?" 

"Well,  yes,"  was  the  hesitating  reply;  ''I  suppose  that  I  can  if 
necessary,  but  it  is  not  likely  to  be  necessary. ' ' 

This  little  episode  did  not  tend  to  allay  the  well  founded  suspicions 
of  trickery  already  in  the  minds  of  the  Indians.  They  had  at  a  pre 
vious  tribal  council  accused  Mr.  Roblin  of  securing  signatures  of  those 
who  did  not  understand  the  nature  of  the  petition,  and  they  now  felt 
that  the  entire  scheme  was  a  well  laid  plot  in  the  Jones  bill  to  absorb 
their  lands.  I  am  free  to  confess  that  from  this  time  on  my  zeal  in 
the  success  of  the  undertaking  lagged,  and  subsequently  I  rejoined 
the  hostiles. 

Shut-to-monen  was  not  permitted  to  speak.  His  time  was  usurped 
by  a  prominent  local  attorney  who  gratuitously  enlightened  the  Secre 
tary  as  to  the  great  wealth  of  some  of  the  Yakimas  and  how  they 
should  be  given  patents  in  fee  for  their  lands.  This  gentleman  after 
wards  publicly  advised  the  Secretary  that  the  present  irrigation  sys 
tem  on  the  reservation,  which  cost  the  Indians  about  $150,000,  should 
be  taken  over  by  the  Reclamation  Service,  the  cost  money  refunded  to 
the  Indians,  to  be  then  used  in  building  reservation  roads.  This  prin 
ciple  of  loot  is  in  perfect  harmony  with  subsequent  movements  along 
this  line. 

The  Fort  Simcoe  Council 

In  September,  1909,  a  council  was  held  at  Fort  Simcoe,  where  the 
opposition  of  the  Indians  was  strongly  manifested.  Supt.  Young 
was  an  early  speaker.  He  told  them  that  according  to  his  estimate, 
it  would  only  take  from  seven  to  twenty  acres  of  each  allotment 
watered,  in  addition  to  the  tribal  funds,  to  secure  individual  water 
rights;  and  that  this  amount  was  all  that  would  be  sold,  if  they 
would  sign  the  contracts.  This  statement  was  seemingly  received 
with  bad  faith,  as  Klah-toosh,  an  hereditary  chief,  arose  and  said: 

"Yes,  my  friend;  I  understand  your  talk.  Do  not  bring  any  lies 
that  you  can  manufacture.  This  country  is  ours.  The  water  is  ours. 
The  law  knows  this.  Who  gave  you  the  right  to  take  from  us  our 
water  which  is  life,  and  then  offer  it  back  to  us  in  exchange  for  our 
land?  Why  should  we  pay  for  that  which  always  belonged  to  us? 
You  white  people  want  to  eat  us  up  like  hogs.  Do  not  talk  to  us 
like  fools."  - 

In  this  connection  Mr.  ^Toung  subsequently  said  to  this  Council, 
"Let  it  be  known  once  for  all  that  the  Indians  can  keep  all  their 
lands  if  they  want  to  do  so." 

Lumni,  the  aged  scout,  replied,  comparing  Mr.  Young  to  Gov.  Stev 
ens.  "When  Governor  Stevens  made  treaty  with  our  fathers  in 
1855,  he  said,  'So  long  as  the  sun  shines,  so  long  as  Mt.  Adams  stands 


20 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


CHIEF  YOOM  TEE-BEE.     (Bitten  by  a  grizzly  bear.) 

I  eader  of  the  "Hostiles." 
"You  are  now  my  brother.     You  must  always  stand  by  my  people  and  help  them. 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS.  21 


and  so  long  as  the  water  flows  down  to  the  ocean,  will  this  reserva 
tion  be  yours.'  Now  like  Governor  Stevens,  you  come  with  sugar 
in  your  mouth  and  talk  two  ways.  We  want  no  lies." 

Judge  Louis  Simpson  said  that  he  would  never  sign  until  he  was 
satisfied  that  the  pledges  made  would  be  kept.  He  referred  to  the 
promise  of  the  Northern  Pacific  Railroad  in  securing  the  right-of- 
way  through  their  reservation,  that  they  would  be  given  "free 
passage  and  free  transportation  for  their  farm  products,"  which 
promises  were  never  made  good.  In  no  uncertain  words  he  charged 
bad  faith  on  the  part  of  all  white  men  wherever  they  had  had  deal 
ings  with  them. 

Mr.  Gilbert,  the  reservation  real  estate  broker,  the  gentleman  who 
advocated  fee-patents  for  the  Indian  lands ;  he  who  held  in  trust  the 
signed  up  petitions,  now  stood  up  and  in  a  long  harangue  explained 
how  the  lands  watered  could  be  made  to  pay  for  the  full  water  rights 
from  rentals  alone.  He  made  the  astounding  statement  that  "under 
the  contracts  the  Indians  cannot  lose  any  part  of  their  lands,  even 
though  none  of  their  timber  is  sold;  if  only  they  will  sign  up."  He 
kindly  offered  to  meet  them  in  council  at  any  time  and  explain  all 
points  connected  with  the  contracts  not  fully  understood. 

It  was  then  that  Chief  Yoom-tee-bee  arose  with  native  dignity  and 
in  part  said:  "I  have  heard  that  talk  before.  I  feel  sweetened. 
This  Government  keeps  not  its  word  with  us.  At  the  Wenatchee 
treaty  we  were  promised  money ;  but  our  lips  are  dry.  We  have 
never  seen  that  money.  We  want  to  see  this  money  first ;  then  we 
will  decide  about  this  other  business.  We  older  men  are  not  sat- 
isfid  to  sign.  When  we  gaze  on  that  money  we  will  say,  'Now  let  us 
consider  this  question.'  : 

He  declared:  "We  do  not  want  Mr.  Gilbert  to  come  to  our  coun 
cils  and  tell  us  what  to  do.  We  know  our  own  business.  We  know 
what  we  want,  and  we  want  no  blind  talk." 

Mr.  Young  explained  that  the  Wenatchee  money  would  be  only  ten 
dollars  for  each  Indian;  and  urged  the  futility  of  permitting  such 
trifling  matter  to  stand  in  the  way  of  so  important  business  as  irri 
gation  for  their  lands.  Chief  Yoom-tee-bee  replied,  "The  Wenatchee 
money  belongs  to  us.  It  has  not  been  paid.  I  am  not  ready  to  sign 
until  this  is  settled.  I  do  not  ask  instructions  from  you.  I  want 
nothing  crooked  for  my  people.  There  are,"  he  added  significantly, 
"some  points  not  yet  settled.  The  Cedar  Valley  was  taken  from  us 
and  never  paid  for.  (See  Note  7.)  When  all  is  clear,  I  will  sign." 
Nothing  was  accomplished  at  this  council. 

Chief   Yoom-tee-bee   subsequently   said:      "These   men,    working 


NOTE  7. — Owing  to  an  erroneous  western  boundary  line,  approximately  300.000 
acres  of  the  Yakima  Reservation,  including  the  Cedar  Valley,  was  long  in  dispute; 
and  a  great  many  settlers  homesteaded  the  best  part  of  the  valley  in  question.  On 
December  21,  1904.  the  Jones  bill  was  passed,  authorising  the  opening  of  the  Yakima 
Reservation  and  the  sale  and  settlement  of  unallotted  lands.  This  bill  recognizes  the 
Indian  claim  to  the  disputed  territory,  but  it  provides:  "That  where  valid  rights 
have  be.en  acquired  prior  to  March  5,  1904.  to  lands  within  said  tract  by  bona  fide 
settlers  or  purchasers  under  the  public  land  laws,  such  rights  shall  not  be  abridged, 
and  any  claim  of  said  Indians  to  these  lands  is  hereby  declared  to  be  fully  compen 
sated  for  by  the  expenditure  of  money  heretofore  made  for  their  benefit  and  in  the 
construction  of  irrigation  works  on  the  Yakima  Indian  Reservation."  This  bill  was 


11  IK  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


hard  to  put  water  on  my  reservation ;  it  is  for  themselves  and  not 
the  Indians.  They  are  making  money  out  of  Indian  lands ;  they  care 
not  for  us.  They  never  come  to  our  homes  to  see  how  we  are  getting 
along;  nor  do  they  try  to  help  us.  They  have  built  towns  on  my 
reservation  and  filled  them  with  saloons.  They  are  killing  my  people 
with  whiskey.  Our  agent  never  comes  among  us,  but  reports  to 
Washington  that  we  have  houses  like  the  white  man,  and  are  doing 
well.  This  is  not  so.  Some  Indians  get  little  rent  money,  and  build 
house  same  as  chicken  house.  You  have  been  in  my  home ;  you  have 
slept  on  my  blanket.  I  want  you  to  tell  how  poor  I  am,  how  little 
I  have  in  my  house." 

The  unerring  sagacity  of  this  untutored  chieftain  in  reading  the 
hidden  motives  of  his  professed  friends  is  well  attested  by  the 

Cloven  Hoof 
betrayed  in  the  following  which  until  this  writing,  was  known  only 

gum-shoed  through  Congress  without  the  knowledge  or  consent  of  the  Yakimas;  as 
attested  in  a  letter  of  protest  from  Chief  Weyallup  Wayacika  to  Indian  Commissioner 
Leupp,  Nov.  10,  1905,  'and  the  Commissioner's  reply  thereto  fourteen  days  later. 

The  money  expended  in  "irrigation  works"  or  other  improvements  on  the  Yakima 
Reservation  prior  to  the  passage  of  the  Jones  bill  in  question,  was  from  the  Annual 
Indian  Appropriation  bill,  and  was  non  re-imbursable:  and  to  charge  the  Indians  up 
with  it  was  a  gross  repudiation.  The  Yakimas  have  never  understood  this  "settle 
ment"  (?)  but  they  realize  that  the  white  man  has  settled  within  their  Reservation 
and  that  the  Government  has  played  them  false.  They  bitterly  resent  this  injustice 
and  I  have  heard  the  topic  warmly  discussed  in  the  tribal  councils.  It  has  ever  been 
a  barrier  to  the  success  of  the  Wapato  Project. 

On  October  6.  1909,  the  Indian  Council  wired  Indian  Commissioner  Valentine: 

"Council  Yakimas  now  in  session  regarding  water  rights.  They  desire  to  know 
whether  boundary  matter  in  Cedar  Valley  has  been  settled;  if  so,  what  amount  al 
lowed  Indians  therefor."  *  *  * 

The  Commissioner  wired  reply: 

"*  *  *  Claim  of  Indians  to  tract  of  land  in  Cedar  Valley  was  recognized  by  Act 
of  Congress,  December  twenty-one,  nineteen  four."  *  *  * 

This  message  did  not  contain  the  information  most  desired.  The  crime  of  repudi 
ation  whereby  the  lands  settled  by  the  whites  were  "declared  to  be  fully  compen 
sated  for."  was  studiously  kept  in  the  background.  The  "Indian  factor"  had  peen 
"eliminated"  and  was  not  to  be  considered. 

The  following  "ultimatum"  reveals  to  what  pitch  of  excitement  the  tribesmen 
were  wrought  by  this  flagrant  violation  of  their  vested  treaty  rights: 

"Yakima  Reservation,  Council  of  Yakimas,  Nov.  2d.  1909. 
"To  the  Honorable  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  Mr.  Ballinger,  Washington.  D.  C.: 

"Dear  Sir:  We.  the  undersigned,  have  this  day  above  dated,  considered  a  long 
standing  question  relative  to  the  Cedar  Valley  country  which  has  been  settled  up  by 
the  whites  and  for  which  the  United  States  has  not  at  any  time  in  our  recollection 
treated  with  our  Fathers  or  with  us — and  which  we  have  time  and  again  asked  the 
United  States  to  restore  to  us  again  as  an  integral  part  of  our  Reservation.  We  do 
hereby  demand  an  indemnity  for  all  moneys  paid  the  United  States  in  money  for 
land  entered  by  settlers  in  the  Cedar  Valley  country,  and  as  it  seems  there  is  no 
prospect  of  the  country  being  vacated  by  such  settlers  by  the  United  States. 

"We  also  demand  the  absolute  right  to  control  pur  own  Reservation  and  as  we  are 
aware  of  the  fact  that  our  Reservation  is  an  Indian  country,  set  aside  by  our  fore 
fathers  by  virtue  of  their  own  right  of  choice  before  they  ceded  the  country  around  it 
to  the  United  States  as  an  everlasting  inheritance,  our  Reservation  is  not  to  be  rated 
as  a  Government  Reservation. 

••\Yt-  also  by  unanimous  voice  set  aside  all  right  of  the  government  to  set  aside  a 
small  strip  of  our  own  country  for  grazing  commons  or  pasture.  We  have  an  abso 
lute  right  to  set  aside  any  area  of  country  for  such  purposes  the  tract  containing 
two  townships  for  grazing  land  as  set  aside  for  us  is  not  recognized  as  we  have 
stock  which  cannot  subsist  on  same.  We.  therefore,  take  this  means  to  inform  your 
office  of  our  position  in  the  matter — and  until  this  matter  is  settled  satisfactorily  we 
can  not  enter  other  questions  now  pending. 

"Very  resnectfullv." 

(Signed  by  Charley  Wesley,  acting  head  chief;  Louis  Mann.  Secretary  of  Council, 
and  14  other  prominent  Indians.) 

See  Note  9,  this  volume,  for  the  original  petition  of  the  Yakimas  concerning 
tribal  stock  range. 

The  Wenatchee  scandal,  referred  to  by  Chief  Yoom-tee-bee,  is  too  great  an 
intrigue  for  the  scope  of  this  work. 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


23 


to  the  Indian  Department  and  the  cohorts  of  the  Reclamation  Ser 
vice. 

"Toppenish,  Washington,  May  27,   1909. 
"Honorable  W.  L.  Jones, 

Washington,  D.  C. 
"My  Dear  Jones: 

"I  presume  that  you  are  busy  with  the  tariff,  but  there  is  a  matter  of 
serious  importance  which  has  arisen  here.  The  Reclamation  Service  are  going  to 
take  the  surveying  crews  away  from  the  Reservation  in  a  very  short  time  now, 
unless  something  definite  can  be  ascertained  from  the  Indian  Department.  I  under 
stand  that  about  $30,000  has  been  expended  in  these  surveys  and  the  project  is  in 
good  shape  to  go  ahead,  but  the  Indian  Department  has  not  reported  any  progress 
in  the  matter  of  securing  consent  of  the  Indians. 

"As  you  know,  the  Yakima  Reservation  presents  an  ideal  situation  for  getting 
water  on  the  land  quickly  and  cheaply.    Not  a  flume  or  syphon  and  scarcely  a  cut 
or  fill  on  the  entire  project.     Most  of  the  land  is  reasonably  near  railroad,  and 
would  immediately  be  used  for  making  homes.     *     *     * 


A   SUMMER  HOUSE   OF   THE   YAKIMAS. 

Satus   River   Canyon,   Yakima  Indian   Reservation,   1906. 

(Copyrighted  by  the  Author.) 

"Mr.  Roblin,  who  was  lease  clerk  at  Fort  Simcoe  for  a  number  of  years,  came 
here  about  last  February,  as  I  remember,  and  stated  that  his  mission  here  was  to 
get  the  consent  of  the  Indians  to  water  their  lands  and  sell  sixty  acres  of  each 
eighty-acre  tract.  He  stated  to  me  that  he  would  be  here  three  months  for  work 
on  this  plan.  *..*.•'*.!  suggested  to  him  a  plan.  It  was  as  follows:  Attorney 
Williamson  (See  Note  8)  represented  that  the  Reclamation  Service  did  not  like  to 
have  the  Indians  hold  twenty  acres  out  of  each  allotment  as,  in  their  opinion-,  it 
would  greatly  injure  the  project,  that  is,  white  people  would  not  want  to  buy  sixty 
acres  out  of  each  eighty -acre  tract,  leaving  the  Indian  family  in  possession  of  the 
other  twenty  acres,  and  he  thought  that  it  would  be  a  very  much  better  plan  if 
the  Indians  could  be  segregated  on  some  other  section  of  the  Reservation  and 
allow  them  to  sell  the  full  eighty  acres  of  each  allotment.  His  idea  was  that  new 


NOTE  8. — Mr.  Ralph  B.  Williamson,  local  attorney  for  the  Reclamation  Service. 


24 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


allotments  might  be  made  to  the  Indians,  either  in  the  mountains,  or  upper  valleys 
or  on  the  Satus  where  the  Indians  could  go  and  raise  stock  and  do  their  farming 
together.  *  *  * 

"Yours, 

"H.  M.  GILBERT." 

The  stench  of  this  unearthing  is  nauseating  to  the  nostrils  of  com 
mon  decency.  None  knew  better  than  the  Reclamation  people  and 
Mr.  Gilbert  that  the  lands  in  the  mountains  or  upper -valleys  are 
unfit  for  farming  purposes;  that  the  bleak,  barren  Cascades  where 


SCENE  ON   THE  SATUS  RIVER.   1906. 
River  flows  through  Canyon  in  the  foreground.     (Mary  Remy,   Photo.) 

frost  and  snow  holds  revelry  seven  months  in  the  year,  was  seriously 
contemplated  as  the  Last  Segregation  and  Final  Grave  of  the  help 
less  Yakima  is  appalling.  It  is  well  that  this  hellishly  inhuman 
plot  was  kept  from  the  ears  of  the  home  loving  and  excitable  tribes 
men. 

Soon  after  the  Simcoe  Council,  I  was  called  to  West  Virginia  by 
the  fatal  illness  of  my  aged  father,  and  I  know  but  little  of  the  im 
mediate  subsequent  events.  The  questionable  methods  pursued  by 
the  promoters  of  the  Wapato  Canal  had  engendered  much  bitter 
feeling  among  the  Indians.  Chief  Yoom-tee-bee,  the  recognized 
leader  of  the  hostiles,  could  not  understand  why  the  whites  were  per 
mitted  to  swarm  into  the  reservation,  which  was  "  given  to  us  for  nil 
time."  Their  agency  affairs  were  handled  very  unsatisfactorily,  and 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


25 


TOM-MAN-CHA-TAH-NEE',   KOHPT. 

(Falls  of  the  Fish  Trap.) 
Satus  River  Canyon,   1906.      (Remy.) 

their  several  petitions  for  redress  of  grievances  elicited  only  vague 
promises,  or  were  wholly  ignored.  The  agency  inspections  were  far- 
cial;  conducted  secretly  from  the  Indians,  who  were  not  permitted 
the  opportunity  to  recite  their  wrongs.  This  blind  business  excited 
them.  The  Yakima  were  only  dogs.  Wild  rumors  were  current  that 
the  reservation  was  to  be  thrown  open,  their  lands  sold  or  taken 
from  them,  and  the  streams  confiscated  by  the  Reclamation  Service. 
Cattle  thieves  operated  with  impunity,  and  bootleggers  plied  their 
nefarious  trade.  (See  Note  9.) 

One  morning  in  1908,  while  riding  with  Chief  Yoom-tee-bee  in  the 
upper  part  of  the  Reservation,  he  dwelt  long  upon  the  wrongs  suf 
fered  by  his  people  through  the  greed  of  the  white  man.  He  spoke  of 
their  treaty  rights  of  1855,  and  said,  "Long  time  ago  this  government 


NOTE  9. — In  their  petition  to  Secretary  Ballinger,  August  24,  1909,  the  Yakimas 
pray: 

"Eighth — That  owing  to  the  fact  that  we  are  constant  losers  from  thieving  stock 
men,  we  are  deterred  from  engaging  in  extensive  stock-raising,  no  outside  grazing 
permits  shall  be  granted  within  the  boundaries  of  the  Yakima  Reservation  settle 
ments,  and  that  a  sufficient  range  in  the  foothills  be  reserved  for  our  exclusive  use. 

"Ninth — We  implore  protection  from  boot-leggers  and  demand  the  removal  of  all 
saloons  from  the  Reservation." 

This  was  the  second  time  within  the  year  that  the  Yakimas  had  asked  depart 
mental  relief  from  the  depredations  of  cattle  thieves.  Mr.  Ballinger  agreed  with  the 
Indian  Council  that  he  would  set  aside  a  pasture  range  for  their  exclusive  use.  and 
did  so;  but  the  boundary  proved  so  inadequate  and  worthless,  that  the  tribe  refused 
.to  recognize  its  validity.  (Refer  to  Note  7,  this  volume.) 

The  Secretary  regarded  the  Reservation  saloons  and  boot-leggers  of  such  trifling 
moment  that  he  wholly  ignored  this  part  of  the  petition.  The  first  is  a  "necessary" 
adjunct  to  the  building  and  development  of  the  Reservation  towns,  while  the  last  is 
a  "Good  Indian"  making  auxiliary,  to  be  endured. 


26 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


and  Gov.  Stevens  made  treaty  and  took  all  our  land  but  this  reser 
vation.  This,  Gov.  Stevens  said,  should  be  ours  as  long  as  the  sun 
shines  and  the  water  flows;  and  no  white  man  would  be  allowed  to- 
live  on  our  reservation."  Ascending  a  slight  emience  where  the 
vision  was  unobstructed, 
he  pointed  tragically  to 
the  east,  where  in  the 
distance  could  be  seen 
the  fringe  of  settlements 
marking  the  irrigated 
district,  and  exclaimed, 
''You  see  there  the 
houses  of  the  white  man. 
They  are  built  on  the 
land  of  my  people.  The 
Government  has  lied  ;  the 
white  man  is  fast  owning 
our  lands.  If  the  Gov 
ernment  must  have  my 
reservation,  I  will  sell  all 
under  the  ditch  and  keep 
all  on  this  side.  No  white 
man  must  come  here. 
The  good  Indians  will 
move  up  here,  and  we 
will  keep  out  all  saloons. 
By  and  by  the  drunk  In 
dians  will  all  die,  and 
there  will  be  no  more 
trouble." 

The  Soda  Springs,  lo 
cated  a  short  distance 
from  the  agency,  be 
cause  of  their  medicinal 
properties  have  always 

been  a  favorite  resort  of  the  Indians,  especially  the  aged  and  infirm. 
This  sylvan  retreat  had  been  practically  usurped  by  the  whites  until 
no  Indian  could  camp  there  with  any  degree  of  satisfaction. 

A  Tribal  Council. 

At  a  tribal  council,  July  1,  1910,  Chief  Waters  stated  that  the  Su 
perintendent  had  on  three  different  occasions  insisted  that  these 
springs  with  their  forty-acre  reserve  be  sold.  The  Chief  objected. 
"We  cannot,"  said  he,  "dispose  of  this  to  the  whites.  We  have  young 


REV.    STWIRE   G.   WATERS. 
Ordained  Minister  M.  E.  Church.  1871. 
Elected    Head    Chief    of   the    Yakimas 

March  22.  1910. 

"I    have    been    praying    that    the    Lord 
would  send  a  good  man  to  help  us." 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


27 


"JIM"     MENINOCK     (Meninokt). 

Son    of    Chief    Meninock,    signer    of 

Treaty,    1855. 


people  capable  of  improving  these 
springs."  The  chief  continued,  "I 
found  a  log  house  built  at  these 
springs  and  asked  Mr.  Young  to 
have  it  destroyed,  but  he  gave  me 
no  satisfactory  answer." 

Louis  Shuster,  an  aged  tribesman, 
said:  "This  world  is  the  work  of 
Me-yah-wah  (God).  Of  course  this 
"God  is  above  us  and  has  great  pow 
er.  He  hears  us  talk  and  knows  if 
we  are  speaking  the  truth  or  telling 
lies.  We  rely  on  you  to  send  a  full 
report  to  the  Department  for  us. 
We  feel  glad  over  this.  When  the 
whites  were  few  our  fathers  gave 
them  land.  Today  I  see  those  few 
white  people  grown  strong  and 
prosperous.  For  them  I  am  glad. 
I  feel  well  towards  all,  but  I  grieve 
to  see  my  people  broken  and  scat 
tered  by  those  whom  we  befriended. 
I,  a  red  man,  am  in  poverty  and  not 
prosperous.  The  government  gave 
us  breeches  and  blankets,  but  they  are  faded  and  gone.  We  do  not 
ask  that  these  be  replaced.  We  want  only  our  own  and  the  right 
to  live." 

Judge  Simpson  then  said:  "I  will  tell  in  a  few  words  what  I 
know.  The  Agent  seems  to  look  upon  us  as  ignorant  children.  He 
is  telling  us  that  our  lands  will  be  bought,  and  is  asking  us  to  sell. 
We  are  ignorant  and  do  not  know,  but  he  is  always  telling  us  this. 
I  corroborate  what  Chief  Waters  says  concerning  the  reserve.  We 
do  not  want  to  sell  any  of  it.  Our  older  people  reserved  this  for 
us  and  we  want  to  reside  here.  We  want  to  keep  it  for  our  chil 
dren.  The  government  in  a  treaty  with  our  fathers  made  witnesses 
of  the  sun,  the  mountains  and  the  rivers  that  so  long  as  these  re 
main  should  this  Reservation  be  for  them  and  their  children. 

1 1  The  sun  has  not  grown  dim ;  the  mountains  have  not  moved ;  the 
rivers  still  flow;  but  our  Reservation  has  changed  and  is  slipping 
from  us. 

"Another  question  put  up  to  us  is  the  water.  These  creeks  flow 
ing  through  our  Reservation  are  ours.  They  belong  to  us;  also  the 
Yakima  River.  I  claim  half  of  it  under  our  treaty  rights.  It  is 
ours."  1 

Chief  Saluskin,  whose  primitive  training  precludes  the  idea  of 
double  dealing,  lamented,  "My  father  was  once  Chief  of  all  this 
country,  and  our  tribe  was  strong.  *  *  *  *  I  now  see  the  whites 
growing  rich  from  our  lands  while  my  tribe  is  going  down  in  pov- 


28 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


SOCIAL  DANCE  OF  THE  YAKIMA. 
(Woodfleld,  1911.) 

erty  and  dying  from  whiskey  and  disease.     We  want  you  to  help 
us.  If  we  sell  our  land,  we  will  have  no  place  to  go.    We 

cannot  live  among  the  whites." 

Distrust  rent  their  own  ranks.  Among  the  various  leaders  of  the 
fourteen  Confederated  Tribes  which  comprise  the  Yakima,  is  the 
ever  haunting  fear  of  treachery.  They  were,  however,  practically 
united  on  one  score.  They  would  not  exchange  their  allotments  for 
the  water  which  was  theirs  by  the  treaty  of  1855.  The  Jones  Bill 
was  brigandage  of  the  purest  type.  In  the  early  stages  of  the 
trouble,  mutterings  and  acrid  denunciations  of  the  "powers  that  be" 
were  heard  by  one  in  close  sympathy  with  a  certain  prominent 
chieftain.  There  loomed  above  the  eastern  slopes  of  the  mighty 
Cascades,  a  cloud  as  dark  and  ominous  as  the  shadow  of  death.  A 


WAR  DANCE  OF  THE  YAKIMA.   1911. 
(Copyrighted  by  the  Author..! 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 29 

few  desperate  spirits  conceived  the  idea  of  self-sacrifice  for  what 
they  believed  to  be  the  good  of  the  tribe.  They  would  create  a 
status  which  would  so  arouse  the  public  as  to  force  an  investigation 
of  their  tribal  condition.  Secret  councils  were  held;  "medicine" 
was  made,  and  the  whites  will  never  know  by  what  mere  chance  an 
actual  uprising  was  avoided.  The  band  fully  realized  what  the  war 
path  meant;  that  they  would  be  hunted  and  shot  or  hanged  as  out 
laws.  The  motive,  right  or  wrong,  was  patriotism,  born  of  despair. 
In  the  death  of  Chief  Yoom-tee-bee,  March  10,  1910,  the  Yakimas 
lost  their  strongest  leader  and  the  Reclamation  Service  was  rid  of 
a  determined  foe. 

The  work  of  securing  signatures  was  continued  under  somewhat 
modified  tactics;   "strays"   were  occasionally  caught,   and  the  list 


YAKIMA  INDIAN  HUNTERS  IN  CAMP,   1912. 

Story    Telling    while    the    Venison    Broils. 

(Copyrighted  by  the  Author.) 

of  "progressives"  added  to  in  various  ways.  The  Indians  aver  that 
some  of  them  were  induced  to  sign,  believing  that  it  was  for  the 
purpose  of  opening  a  public  road ;  others,  that  they  were  signing  for 
rent  money.  But  despite  this  despicable  double  dealing,  ultimate 
success  seemed  far  distant.  The  Yakimas  as  a  whole  were  deter 
mined.  The  most  sanguine  promoters  were  discouraged.  The  Wapato 
Canal  was  likely  to  prove  only  a  chimera.  Something  must  be  done, 
and  the 

Last  Desperate  Card  Was  Played. 

There  are  on  the  Reservation  many  very  capable  Indians,  who 
feel  that  they  should  be  permitted  to  transact  their  own  private 
affairs,  so  far  as  their  individual  allotments  are  concerned,  inde 
pendent  of  government  supervision.  This  longing  for  semi-liberty 


THE  CRIMK    ACAINST   Till:    ^  A  K  I  MAS. 


was  now  to  be  taken  advantage  of  in  an  attempt  to  further  the  in 
terests  of  the  Reclamation  Service. 

In  March,  1911,  the  following  letter  was  sent  to  two  hundred  and 
nine  Indians.     From  a  number  of  these  letters  in  my  possession,  I 


THE  INTERVIEW.     1911. 
(Copyrighted  by  Ovid  T.  McWhorter.) 

select  the  one  received  by  Louis  Mann,  Corresponding  Secretary  of 
the  Yakima  Indian  Council  Fire,  rancher,  house  carpenter  and  har 
ness  maker. 

"Department  of  the  Interior,  United  States  Indian  Service.  ) 
"Yakima  Agency,  Fort  Simcoe,  Wash.,  March  9,  1911.  ( 
"Mr.  Louis  Mann, 

"North  Yakima,  Washington. 
"Dear  Sir: 

"Last  fall  I  submitted  to  the  Indian  Office  for  approval,  a  list  con 
taining  the  names  of  a  number  of  the  most  intelligent,  industrious  and  worthy 
Indians,  recommending  that  they  be  given  the  privilege  of  leasing  their  own  and 
minor  children's  allotments.  Your  name  was  on  this  list. 

"Recently  the  list  was  returned  to  me  advising  that  no  Indian  allotte  who  had 
not  signed  a  petition  for  the  purchase  of  a  water  right  under  the  proposed  Wajiato 
Project  would  be  considered  competent  and  be  granted  authority  to  lease  his  or 
her  land'.  As  you  have  not  signed  such  a  petition,  I  write  this  to  explain  to  you 
that  I  would  be  glad  to  resubmit  your  name  to  the  Office,  recommending  you  as 
one  competent  to  lease  your  own  land;  but  in  order  to  do  so.  it  will  be  necessary 
that  you  sign  one  of  the  water  right  petitions  in  question.  It  you  do  not  thor 
oughly  understand  the  nature  of  these  petitions,  I  would  suggest  that  you  call 
at  the  Agency  whenever  convenient,  when  I  will  take  pleasure  in  i-\j Gaining  it  to 
you  in  detail. 

"Your  early  and  favorable  consideration  in  this  matter  will,  in  my  opinion,  be 
to  your  best  interest.  A  blank  is  enclosed  herewith  for  your  use,  if  desired. 

"Very  respectfully, 

"S.  A.  M.  YOUNG, 
"SiiDt.  &  Spec.  Dish.  Agent." 
"P.  S. — This  only  applies  to  lands  within  the  boundary  of  said  project," 

Among  those  who  received  this  "bid"  for  the  heritage  of  their 
intelligence,  are  Rev.  Stwire  G.  Waters,  an  ordained  minister  of  the 
Methodist  Church,  and  Head  Chief  of  the  Yakimas;  We-Yallup 
Wa-Ya,  Ci-ka,  clan  chief  of  the  Ahtanum  and  president  of  the  Yak 
ima  Tribal  Court ;  Tecumseh  Yakatowit,  recently  elected  head  chief 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


31 


by  the  Anti-brotherhood  faction  of  the  tribe.  Lancaster  Spencer,  a 
man  of  education  and 
prominence ;  Mrs.  Spen 
cer,  two  daughters  and 
one  son,  a  private  in  the 
United  States  Army,  were 
also  complimented  with 
this  offer  of  a  "Mess  of 
Pottage."  R.  D.  Holt,  a 
successful  merchant  tail 
or  of  North  Yakima,  a 
graduate  of  the  Chema- 
wia  Indian  School,  Ore 
gon,  1897,  holds  a  teach 
er's  certificate  in  voice 
and  music  theory,  Wil 
lamette  University,  Ore 
gon,  1898.  Government 
Instructor  in  Tailoring, 
Indian  School,  Santa  Fe, 
New  Mexico;  graduate  of 
John  J.  Mitchell  School  of 
Garment  Cutting,  New 
York  City,  1902.  Harry 
Holt,  accountant  and 
bookkeeper.  Mrs.  Bessie 
Swartz,  holding  teacher's 
certificate,  Eighth  Grade 
Public  Schools. 

Other  Yakimas  of 
marked  business  ability 
could  be  added  to  this  list,  but  suffice  to  say  that  this  brilliant 
attempt  at  coercion  failed  of  its  object.  In  a  subsequent 
council  at  White  Swan,  Chief  Waters  justly  demanded  of  Superin 
tendent  Young  that  he  "Send  no  more  such  letters  to  my  people." 
Mr.  Young  replied  that  he  could  not  permit  Mr.  Waters  to  dictate 
to  him;  that  the  letters  in  question  had  been  "sent  out  under 
instructions  from  the  Indian  Department."  Louis  Mann,  the  "Bad 
Injun  of  the  Ahtanum,"  wrote  me  concerning  this  letter.  "On 
great  God's  earth,  I  will  never  under  any  circumstances  do  this.  If 
I  was  born  dry,  well  let  me  go  to  hell  as  I  am  if  I  ever  under  any 
law  sign  away  my  little  allotment."  "It  is  a  shame,"  he  after 
wards  said,  "that  this  government  would  try  to  bribe  and  black 
mail  us  in  this  way.  But  the  white  man  has  no  shame.  He  is  blind 
to  all  good  and  like  a  wolf  is  hungry  for  our  little  homes." 


CHIEF    WE-YAL-LUP    WA-YA-GIKA. 

"I  am  not  against  the  white  man." 
(Copyrighted    by    the    Author.) 


32 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


It   is   hard   to   conceive 


that  the  Indian  Depart 
ment  would  resort  to  such 
questionable  means  in  an 
attempt  to  achieve  a  cov 
eted  end.  In  this  it 
steeped  its  shrine  in  the 
plunder-lust  of  the  land 
shark  and  soulless  specu 
lator.  The  smut  of  crime 
blackens  the  act.  Is  the 
poor  recognition  of  the  In 
dians '  capabilities  a  thing 
of  barter  to  be  had  only 
at  the  price  of  the  pre 
rogative  to  think  for 
himself?  After  the  Yak- 
imas '  experience  with  the 
promoters  of  the  Wapato 
Project  up  to  this  time, 
would  it  be  a  mark  of  in 
telligence  had  he  accepted 
the  proffered  ''trade"; 
and  by  so  doing  jeopard 
ized  his  title  to  three- 
fourths  of  his  allotment? 
Let  him  who  is  suffering 
from  a  preponderance  of 
brains,  cast  the  first  stone 
at  the  "foolish"  Yakima. 
In  the  face  of  the  fore 
going,  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  Louis  Mann,  of  his  own  volition, 
leased  to  Mr.  Amos  Morse,  near  White  Swan,  an  inherited  eighty 
acres,  1911  and  1912,  for  which  he  received  $180.00  cash,  per  year, 
in  advance.  Under  date  November  11,  1911,  Mr.  Young  served 
notice  on  Mr.  Morse  that 

"Since  the  land  has  been  used  by  you  during  the  past  season  without  a  Govern 
ment  lease,  it  becomes  my  duty  to  collect  a  reasonable  rental  for  the  use  of  it, 
and  to  take  it  up  on  the  records  as  trespass  money." 

The  sum  asked  for  is  $180.00.  Mr.  Morse  was  also  notified  that 
he  should  take  a  government  lease  if  he  wanted  the  land  for  1912, 
otherwise  he  would  be  expected  to  vacate  by  March  1,  1912.  Later, 
in  response  to  an  inquiry,  Mr.  Young  wrote  me : 

*  *  *  "The  rules  and  regulations  governing  the  Icn-in-  m  Indian  lands  strictly 
forbid  the  Indians  to  lease  privately.  We  have  a  few  competent  Indians  who  are 
permitted  to  lease  their  own  allotments  without  Departmental  control.  These  leases, 
however,  must  be  approved  by  me,  and  one  copy  furnished  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  for  file.  Louis  Mann  is  not  one  of  the  number  granted  this  privilege. 
If  Mr.  Morse  uses  the  allotments  »>f  Luuis  Mann  and  Lucy  Mann  durini:  tin-  S.M 


LOUIS  CHARLES  MANN.   1912. 

("Bad  Injun  of  the  Ahtanum.") 

"I  am  trying  to  live  peaceably  and  abide 

by  the  white  man's  law." 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


33 


son  of  1912,  without  a  government  lease,  this  office  will  compel  him,  through  the 
courts,  if  necessary,  to  pay  trespass  into  this  office."     *     *     * 

The  Trail  of  the  Serpent 

Is  still  more  patent  in  the  following: 

"Department  of  the  Interior,  Office  of  Indian  Affairs, 

"Washington,  May  11,  1912. 
"Mr.  Louis  Mann, 

"North  Yakima,  Washington. 

"My  Friend:  The  office  has  received  your  letter  of  January  29,  1912,  saying 
that  you  were  one  of  a  number  of  Yakima  Indians  recommended  as  being  compe 
tent  to  lease  their  lands  and  those  of  their  minor  children  without  Departmental 
control,  and  that  you  do  not  understand  why  you  have  not  been  given  this  privi 
lege.  You  add  that  you  have  leased  your  land  and  also  that  of  your  deceased  wife 
for  $180.00  cash  in  advance. 

"The  Superintendent  of  the  Yakima  Agency  submitted  a  list  of  Indians  deemed 
competent  to  manage  or  lease  their  allotments  without  Departmental  supervision 


THE  HOME  OF  LOUIS  MANN.  "INCOMPETENT." 

Built  by  himself,  1912. 

"Ahk-a-nunk  Why-am-mah."      (See   the   Eagle.) 
(A  snap  shot.     Copyrighted  by  the  Author.) 

and  your  name  was  included  therein.  He  was  informed,  however,  that  this  privi 
lege  would  not  be  given  to  any  one  who  had  not  signed  a  petition  for  a  water 
right  under  the  Wapato  Project.  It  appears  that  you  have  not  signed  such  an 
agreement.  Notwithstanding  this  fact,  your  name  was  presented  to  the  Depart 
ment  for  consideration  in  connection  with  the  leasing  privilege,  and  on  May  2 
your  request  was  denied  by  the  Assistant  Secretary. 

"The  lease  in  question  is  illegal  and  void,  and  unless  your  renter  enters  into  a 
legal  lease  he  must  vacate  the  land. 

"Respectfully, 

"C.  F.  HAUKE, 
,.-.  "Second  Assistant  Commissioner." 

For  spurning  the  bribe  of  March  9,   1911,  Louis  Mann  ''is  not 


M 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


one  of  the  number."  When  speaking  of  this  to  me,  this  fair-minded 
tribesman  said:  "I  have  advised  my  people  and  not  for  one  mil 
lion  dollars  will  I  betray  or  sell  them  out." 

This  coercive  policy  is  in  keeping  with  that  wherein  an  allottee 
who  applies  for  and  receives  a  patent  in  fee  for  his  land  is  com 
pelled  to  sign  for  water  under  the  Reclamation  Service.  A  pur 
chaser  of  deceased  Indian  lands  is  also  forced  to  apply  for  water 
under  the  same  conditions,  without  any  limit  as  to  the  probable  cost 
of  such  water,  nor  stipulated  time  of  delivery.  Such  odious  tyranny 
has  served  greatly  to  hold  land  values  below  par;  the  Indian  alone 
being  the  loser. 

The  following  tabulation  shows  the  number  of  all  classes  signed 

for  wrater  prior  to  June  27,  1911  : 

Competents    132 

Minors  on  account  of  incompetent  parents 57 

Incompetent  adults   327 

Minors,  competent  parents 69 

Minors,  orphans   14 

Deceased    Indians    67 

All  except  those  designated  "competents"  being  signed   by 

Superintendent. 

White  owners   .  .160 


the 


Total   726 

This  represents  about  fifty  per  cent  of  the  land  affected,  while 


\yilK-ACH   (Sweat   House). 

Yakima  Indian  Reservation.  1911. 

(Copyrighted  by  the  Author.) 


only  seventy-five  per  cent  is  required  to  make  the  Jones  Bill  effec 
tive.     Such,  doubtless,  wras  the  policy  defined  when  two  years  pre- 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS.  35 

vious  the  boast  had  been  made  to  me  that  "Within  five  years  the 
white  man  will  have  such  control  as  to  enable  him  to  build  the  canal 
regardless  of  the  Indians'  consent";  and  that  "The  government  will 
build  this  canal  whether  the  Indians  want  it  or  not." 

At  a  public  meeting  in  Toppenish,  April  5,  1911,  Superintendent 
Young  stated  that  the  public  was  laboring  under  a  misapprehension 
relative  to  the  Wapato  project;  that  the  petitions  then  being  pre 
sented  to  the  Indians  provided  for  a  water  right,  exclusive  of  sell 
ing  any  part  of  the  allotments  watered.  I  asked  for  a  copy,  as  I 
was  to  attend  a  tribal  council  the  next  day,  and  pledged  that  the 
Indians  would  sign  such  petition.  It  was  not  forthcoming.  Subse 
quently  I  repeated  this  request  by  letter,  and  received  a  duplicate 


A  PRIMITIVE  DWELLING. 

Yo-kosh    (Deer   horn)    and   Wife— Yakima    Indian    Reservation. 
(Photographed,  Dec.,  1911.) 

of  the  old  petition,  in  previous  use.  Mr.  Young  in  his  letter  of  trans 
mit  tal  says: 

"I  trust  after  reading  this  blank  carefully  and  understanding  it,  that  you  will 
cease  from  further  opposing  this  project.  We  feel  that  your  opposition  has  been 
very  material  in  hindering  the  progress  of  this  work,  and  since  it  appears  to  be 
the  result  of  a  misunderstanding  I  hope  that  we  can  now  depend  upon  your 
assistance." 

Astounded,  and  believing  that  Mr.  Young  had  by  mistake  sent 
an  obsolete  copy,  I  renewed  my  request  for  the  petition  mentioned 
in  his  speech,  pledging  to  "secure  the  consent  of  my  tribe  for  the 
earliest  possible  commencement  of  the  work."  Result — an  exact 
duplicate  of  the  former  copy.  Despairing  of  ever  being  able  to 
fathom  the  ways  of  the  white  man,  I  felt  that  perhaps  after  all  the 


36 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


admonition  of  Chief  Klah-toosh  at  the  Fort  Simcoe  Council  was  not 
far  fetched. 

In  several  instances  the  white  purchasers  of  Indian  lands  have 
boldly  usurped  the  water  running  in  irrigating  ditches  built  by 
Indians  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago.  In  1910  and  1911 
Simon  Goudy  and  others  near  White  Swan  suffered  in  this  respect. 
Mr.  Goudy  lost  his  potato  crops  in  consequence  and  when  he 
reported  conditions  to  Superintendent  Young,  that  worthy  refused 
to  interfere.  Louis  Mann  on  the  Ahtanum  was  a  loser  from  the 
same  cause.  The  Indian  officials  were  either  unable  or  unwilling 
to  afford  relief.  On  January  27,  1912,  the  affected  allottees  peti 
tioned  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  for  protection,  and  notwith 
standing  an  "investigation"  was  promised,  the  past  season  was  a 
repetition  of  the  two  previous  years — stolen  water  with  even  a  wider 
ruination  of  crops.  The  "Bad  Injun"  has  declared  his  intentions 
for  the  future.  "I  am  trying,"  he  said,  "to  live  peaceably  and  abide 
by  the  white  man's  laws.  This  ditch  was  built  some  forty  years  ago 
and  by  my  people  and  it  is  ours.  My  wife  and  papooses  must  have 
food  same  as  those  of  the  white  man.  If  the  officials  cannot  pro- 


TYPICAL  YAKIMA  INDIAN  DWELLING.   1912. 

Home  of  Schna'-tupsh  (Sna'-tups)   Ka-lula.  one  of  the  last  surviving 
warriors.  Yakima  War.   1855. 
(Copyrighted  by  the  Author.) 

tect  me  in  my  rights,  and  my  ditch  is  again  killed,  there  is  one  Injun 
going  on  the  war  path.    I  will  use  my  rifle." 

In  1911  the  Reclamation  Service  collected  $4,200  storage  water 
rentals  at  $1.00  per  acre  in  excess  of  fifty  cents  per  acre  for  canal 
maintenance.  Early  in  August,  1912  the  canal  gates  were  shut 
down  without  any  justification.  Owing  to  the  unusually  heavy  rains 
in  the  mountains  and  upper  valley,  the  flow  of  water  was  more  Hum 
normal  and  the  white  owners  and  lessees  of  Indian  lands,  claiming 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS.  37 

that  there  was  no  need  for  storage  water,  refused  to  accede  to  this 
demand  for  a  "pound  of  flesh,"  but  on  the  contrary  began  prepar 
ations  to  test  the  legality  of  the  action.  To  avert  this  storm  and  the 
exposures  sure  to  follow,  at  the  last  moment  the  canal  gates  were 
raised  and  "free"  water  was  sent  by  the  Reclamation  Service — and 
perhaps  God — to  gladden  the  hearts  of  both  Indian  and  white 
rancher. 

The  yearly  canal  maintenace  fee  must  be  paid  by  the  middle  of 
July  on  pain  of  forfeiture  of  water,  which  is  just  under  ordinary 
conditions.  Money  due  allottees  from  land  rentals  are  withheld,  while 
in  many  cases  the  Indian  actually  suffers  in  consequence, 
especially  the  aged  and  infirm.  Mr.  Apes  Goudy,  an  industrious 
allottee,  in  1912  had  $2500.00  due  him  which  was  held  by 
the  Agency,  and  was  refused  $20.00  with  which  to  pay  his  water 
rental.  He  saved  his  forty  acres  of  growing  alfalfa  only  by  borrow 
ing  the  money  from  a  neighbor. 

Notwithstanding  the  Yakimas  have  timber  valued  at  more  than 
three  million  dollars,  they  are  unable  to  make  any  use  of  it  in  building 
improvements.  The  sawmill  erected  by  the  government  in  accord 
ance  with  treaty  stipulations,  was  burned  more  than  twenty  years 


TYPICAL  YAKIMA  INDIAN   BARN,   1912. 
(Copyrighted  by  the  Author.) 

ago,  under  suspicious  circumstances,  as  the  Indians  declare.  Since 
that  time  the  Indians  have  been  compelled  to  purchase  lumber  from 
local  dealers  at  an  advanced  price.  The  great  majority  of  their 
dwellings  comprise  one  or  two  single  walled  rooms,  with  a  "lean  to" 
kitchen;  while  their  "barns"  are  cottonwood  posts  planted  in  the 
ground,  roughly  boarded  or  wattled  with  poles ;  thatched  with  wil 
low  brush  and  straw.  They  have  vainly  importuned  the  Indian 
office  to  have  this  saw  mill  repaired.  Under  date  of  April  26,  1909, 
in  answer  to  an  appeal  from  Louis  Mann,  Mr.  Hauke  wrote :  ' '  The 
sawmill  is  to  be  put  into  shape  for  operation  at  an  early  date."  This 
promise  is  now  almost  three  years  old  and  the  "early  date"  is 


38 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 

still  in  the  future.    No  attempt  has  been  made  towards  restoring  the 
mill. 

The  Yakimas'  complaint  of  unfair  dealing  covers  practically  every 
phase  of  the  development  of  their  reservation.  Bitter  feelings 
attended  the  adjustment  of  damages  for  the  right-of-way  for  the 
Toppenish,  Simcoe  and  Western  Railroad.  It  is  averred  that  many 
allottees  unwittingly  signed  settlement  papers,  supposing  that  th«-y 
were  "signing  for  lease  money."  It  would  appear  from  the  affidavit 
of  Pauline  Pirns,  March  1,  1911,  that  this  is  true.  Others  charge  that 
coercive  and  intimidative  methods  were  resorted  to  in  securing  sig 
natures.  Mr.  Simon  Goudy,  a  half-blood,  and  one  of  the  209  offered 
a  "competency"  tag  in  exchange  for  an  autographic  application  for 
water  under  the  Jones  Bill,  refused  to  accept  the  appraisement  of 
$183.00  damages  to  his  lands  as  returned  by  Supt.  Young  and  a  rep 
resentative  of  the  railroad  company,  and  incurred  divers  troubles 
therefrom.  It  would  appear  from  Mr.  Goudy 's  affidavit,  Feb.  28, 
1911,  that  he  was  first  asked  by  Supt.  Young  to  donate  the  right-of- 
way  in  question,  and  that  afterwards  when  he  refused  the  appraised 
valuation,  Mr.  Young  sent,  on  three  different  occasions,  Indian 
policemen  to  forcibly  bring  Mr.  Goudy  to  the  Agency  for  the  pur 
pose  of  compelling  him  to  sign  the  right-of-way  papers.  These 
measures  failed  and  the  case  was  referred  to  a  board  of  appraisers 
for  adjustment  and  in  due  time  Mr.  Goudy  was  notified  by  Mr. 
Young  that  the  damages  had  been  re-assessed  at  $381.25.  This  Mr. 
Goudy  agreed  to  accept,  but  when  he  called  at  the  Agency  for  the 
money,  he  was  informed  that  $20.00  of  the  amount  must  go  to  the 
appraisers.  Mr.  Goudy  refused  settlement  and  the  transaction  w.is 
not  closed  until  several  months  later,  when,  at  my  instance,  it  was 
brought  to  the  notice  of  the  Indian  Department  so  forcibly  that  the 
full  amount  was  ordered  paid.  The  coercive  measures  pursued  by 
Mr.  Young  in  the  premises  are  verified  by  a  verbal  statement  from 
the  captain  of  police,  which  accompanied  the  said  affidavits  in 
charges  preferred  against  Mr.  Young,  signed  by  Louis  Mann  and 
the  writer,  March  2,  1911.  These  charges  lay  hidden  in  the  office 
of  the  Board  of  Indian  Commissioner  until  February.  1!M'2.  when 
through  the  efforts  of  Senator  Miles  Poindexter  the  Indian  Depart 
ment  was  forced  to  take  notice  of  the  petition.  (See  Note  10.) 


NOTE  10 — "Ahtanum  Res.,  Wash.,  but  my  postofflce  address  North  Yakima, 
Wash..  Jan.  20th.  1912. 

"Miles  Poindexter:  My  kind  and  welcome  friend.  I  was  reading  yours  to  L.  V. 
McWhorter  in  relative  to  Toppenish  and  Simcoe  Western  Railway  Co..  and  the 
charges  to  [against]  Supt.  S.  A.  M.  Young,  making  the  poor  redskins  to  sign  without 
their  understanding  what  they  sign  for  and  it  is  a  shameful  deed  for  any  person  to  do 
such  business.  *  *  *  but  of  course  he  will  be  well  guarded  by  his  frien. 
Washington,  D.  C..  at  the  headquarters  in  the  office,  and  what  can  a  poor  lo  Indian 
do  when  the  reports  are  made  against  him. 

"I  am  not  mad  at  Supt.  S.  A.  M.  Young;  he  is  my  good  friend  in  person;  but  as 
the  poor  Indians  make  complaint  against  him  about  their  moneys  the  proceed  de 
rived  from  the  sales  of  the  inherited  lands  he  holds  the  moneys  and  the  poor 
Indians  call  for  their  moneys,  but  he  refuse  to  give  them  only  as  he  damn  please, 
and  in  my  opinion  as  I  study  .ill  of  these  things  doings  of  the  law  of  United  States 
it  is  a  good  Political  Schemes.  I  think  this  is  a  good  Grafting  policy  but  lo  a  poor 
Indian  he  sells  his  inherited  holdings  and  then  wants  money  but  is  held  down  and 
it  seems  to  me  it  is  merely  good  Speculation  to  do  away  with  Indian  Country  but 
us  poor  Indians  we  do  not  know  and  my  wish  to  you  is  for  aid.  I  wish  all  of  these 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


On  this  score,  Mr.  Hauke,  the  Second  Assistant  Indian  Commission 
er,  under  date  February  24,  1912,  wrote  Mr.  Poindexter : 

"In  regard  to  the  charges  of  coercion,  the  Superintendent  in  a  report  dated  Jan 
uary  19,  1911,  says: 

"  'In  conclusion,  I  wish  to  say  that  no  Indian  has  ever  been  forced  or  unduly 
urged  to  sign,  any  paper  under  my  jurisdiction,  and  all  Indians  connected  with 
right-of-way  damages  have  been  fully  advised  as  to  their  rights.  Moreover,  these 
Indians  know  their  rights  too  well  to  be  forced  into  signing  what  they  do  not 
wish  to  sign,  even  were  I  inclined  to  force  them.' " 

This  bare  statement  by  the  Superintendent  has  recognized  prepond 
erance  over  any  affidavits  or  evidence  produced  by  the  Indians,  and 
no  investigation  of  the  charges  preferred  against  the  Superintendent 
in  the  premises  was  made.  However,  he  has  been  removed  to  fresh 
pastures.  ___^_ 

During  this  time  Mr. 
Goudy  had  trouble  with 
the  railroad  construction 
gang.  He  justly  refused 
admission  to  his  premises 
until  his  claim  for  dam 
ages  was  settled.  One 
evening  representatives  of 
the  company  informed 
him:  ""We  will  come  and 
pull  down  that  fence  to 
morrow."  "I  don't  think 
you  will;  I  will  be  there," 
was  the  quiet  reply.  At 
the  appointed  time  a  fore 
man  of  construction  ap 
peared  with  the  ostensible 
purpose  of  carrying  out 
the  threat  of  the  previous 
evening ;  but  when  he 
found  Mr.  Goudy,  a  com 
mittee  of  one,  on  recep 
tion  with  a  Winchester, 
he  hesitated.  For  a  mo 
ment  he  stood  viewing  the 
grim,  silent  Indian,  then 
became  suddenly  con 
scious  that  he  was  not  liv 
ing  up  to  the  "golden 
rule,"  as  edging  away  he 
said  in  a  conciliative  voice,  "I  was  sent  here  to  take  down  your  fence, 
but  I  am  not  going  to  do  it.  I  don't  think  it  would  be  right." 

evils  be  remedied  by  the  honest  men  in  the  Senate.  I  am  a  full  blood  Indian  Yakima 
and  I  very  much  thank  you  for  them  book  you  sent  me;  it  give  mtei  whole  lot  to  go 
by  and  I  wish  your  kindness  to  answer  me.  I  like  all  the  honest  white  people.  And 
I  am  yours  ever  most  Truly  friend,  LOUIS  MANN. 


SIMON  GOUDY,   1912. 

'I  don't  think  you  will;  I  will  be  there." 
(Copyrighted    bj    the    Author.) 


40 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


The  Jones  Road  Bill. 

In  pursuance  of  a  petition  from  the  Commercial  Club  of  Wapato, 
a  Reservation  town,  and  other  valley  towns,  Senator  W.  L.  Jones, 
under  date  of  January  13,  1911,  introduced  in  the  United  States  Sen 
ate  an  amendment  to  the  Current  Indian  Approbiation  Bill : 

"For  the  construction  and  improvement  of  wagon  roads  on  the  Yakima  Indian 
Reservation,  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  to  be  re-imbursable  out  of  the  proceeds 
from  sales  of  surplus  lands  of  said  reservation." 

In  a  communication  to  the  writer,  April  28,  1911,  Mr.  Hauke  is  free 
to  sanction  this  measure,  stating  reasons  why  the  office  believes  that 
the  appropriation  will  benefit  the  Indians.     His  argument  betrays  a 
lack  of  knowledge  of  conditions 
on  the  Reservation.    Owing  to  the 
common  interests  of  the  Indians 
and  whites,  and  the  diversified  in 
terests  of  the  many  allottees,  no 
adequate  justice  to  the  Yakimas 
as  a  tribe  could  come  in  the  pass 
age  of  this  bill  and  the  Indians 
were    greatly    incensed.      It    was 
"another    scheme    of    the    white 
man  to  steal  our  money." 

Under  date  February  27,  1911, 
the  Commercial  Club  of  Toppenish 
petitioned  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior,  urging  the  commence 
ment  of  the  Wapato  Project,  stat 
ing  that  "the  Indians  have  ex 
pressed  themselves  and  are  ready 
and  anxious  for  the  work  to  pro 
ceed. "  This  petition  is  volumi 
nous  and  dwells  on  the  import 
ance  of  immediate  action  in  order 
to  avoid  litigation,  citing  that  the 
shortage  of  water  for  irrigation 
purposes  the  previous  season  had 
caused  a  fund  to  be  raised  and  an 
attorney  employed  to  bring  suit 
in  the  name  of  the  Indians  for 
their  water  rights.  "Active  plead 
ings  by  interested  property  owners  alone  averted"  this  long  dreaded 
litigation,  which  would  have  a  tendency  to  depreciate  land  values 
throughout  the  valley.  The  petition  emphasizes  that  the  Indian  be 
permitted  to  sell  some  part  of  his  holdings ;  and  repeats  the  same  old 
gag  that  the  "white  home  owners  would  wield  a  splendid  influence 
over  their  Indian  neighbors." 

The  road  bill  in  question  was  presented  without   consulting  the 


MRS.  JOSEPHINE  AUGUSTUS  YEM- 

OWAT,   (1912) 

The    last    surviving    child    of    Tee-ias 
(Tee-ya-yash)  Peace  Chief  of  the  Yak 
imas.   1855. 
(Copyrighted  by  the  Author.) 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


41 


Yakimas,  nor  were  they  aware  of  this  new  move  to  relieve  them  of 
their  tribal  wealth,  until  I  received  a  copy  of  the  bill  from  Washing 
ton.  A  council  of  the  tribe  was  immediately  called,  and  a  hurried 
counter-petition  signed  by  fifty-three  Indians,  was  forwarded  to  the 
Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs.  Superintendent  Young  had  pre 
viously  committed  himself  not  to  oppose  this 

Swing  of  the  Big  Commercial  Stick. 

He  was  tied  so  far  as  the  interests  of  his  wards  were  concerned. 

April  6,  1911,  the  Yaki 
mas,  at  my  instance,  as 
sembled  in  Council  and 
forwarded  a  petition  to 
the  Indian  Office,  asking 
for  the  construction  of  the 
Wapato  Canal  by  the  In 
dian  Department,  and 
briefly  outlined  a  plan  by 
which  they  think  Hie  work 
can  be  done.  Tribal  funds 
are  to  be  used,  but  no  part 
of  any  allotment  watered 
is  to  be  taken  for  any  cost 
of  the  canal,  but  if  any 
allottee  benefited  has  not 
tribal  or  individual  money 
to  cover  costs,  the  pro 
ducts  or  rental  of  the  al 
lotment  so  watered  is 
pledged  for  such  cost. 
They  are  not  to  pay  for 
any  storage  dams.  The 
petition  also  provides  that 
the  $100,000  called  for  for 
road  building,  is  to  be 
used  in  the  construction 
of  the  canal. 

Owing  to  the  strong 
protest  by  the  Indians  and 
the  publicity  therefrom, 
the  road  bill  never 
reached  the  floor  of  the 
Senate.  It  remains  to  be 
seen  what  disposition  was 
made  of  their  petition  for 
the  Wapato  canal. 

Under  date  of  June  10, 

1911      Mr     TTanlra     in    yo^Kr  TW-WAH-Y. 

11,   IVir.   ±lauKe,   in  reply  Christianized    "Flora." 

to  this  petition,  wrote  me  :  Bix-months-old  Yakima,   1911. 

(Copyrighted    by    the    Author.) 


42 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


the   nit  TUT   irri- 


"The  matter  of  securing  funds  for  continuing  the  Wapato  Project  is  now  before 
the  proper  officials  for  consideration.     As  soon  as  all  reports   in  the   matter  are 
received,  the  Office  will  be  in  a  position  to  outline  a 
gation  of  the  Yakima  Reservation." 

In  September,  1911, 
Hon.  Walter  F.  Fisher, 
Secretary  of  the  Interior, 
accompanied  by  Senator 
W.  L.  Jones,  met  the  Yak- 
imas  in  council  at  Toppen- 
ish  for  the  ostensible  pur 
pose  of  hearing  their  side 
of  the  water  rights  ques 
tion.  I  was  then  absent 
from  the  state,  but  Mr. 
Fisher  was  handed  a  writ 
ten  statement,  signed  by 
myself  and  William  Char 
ley,  that :  "  We  have  proof 
that  deception  has  been 
practiced  in  securing  sig 
natures  of  the  Yakimas 
for  water  rights  under 
the  Wapato  Canal." 

But,  of  course,  such  a 
charge  emanating  from 
"two  mere  Indians''  could 
not  be  considered.  I  am 
creditably  informed  that 
apparently  the  Secretary 
was  possessed  of  all  de 
sired  facts  in  the  case  and 
was  ill  disposed  to  hear 
any  complaint  from  the 
Indians.  The  meeting 
proved  one  of  mere  form ; 
the  policy  of  irrigation 
for  the  Reservation  had 
been  previously  deter 
mined. 


HANNAH. 

Three  Years  Old;  Yakima  (1911). 
.(Copyrighted    by    the    Author.) 


Suppressing  a  Just  Measure. 

On  February  22,  1912,  Hon.  J.  H.  Stephens,  Chairman  of  the  House 
Committee  on  Indian  Affairs,  in  the  interests  of  the  Yakimas  and  the 
Pimas,  who  are  similarly  situated,  introduced  in  the  House  H.  J.  Res 
olution  No.  250 : 

"Providing  for  institution  of  suits  by  the  Attorney  (irnrnil  to  determine  and 
adjudicate  the  rights  of  the  Pima  Indians  to  the  use  of  the  waters  of  the  Gila 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS.  43 

river  and  its  tributaries  in  Arizona  and  New  Mexico  for  irrigation  purposes,  and  to 
determine  and  adjudicate  the  rights  of  the  Yakima  Indians  to  the  use  of  water  for 
irrigation  of  Ahtanum  creek  and  the  Yakima  river  and  its  tributaries  in  the  State 
of  Washington,  and  for  other  purposes." 

This  resolution  was  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Indian  Affairs  and 
ordered  printed.  It  was  then  sent  to  Secretary  Fisher  for  approval, 
who  held  it  in  abeyance. 

The  Jones  Storage  Water  Bill. 

In  the  meantime  other  measures  touching  the  vital  interests  of  the 
Yakimas  were  on  foot.  On  May  2,  1912,  Senator  Jones  introduced  in 
the  Senate  S.  Bill  No.  6693,  appropriating  $1,600,000 

"For  the  purpose  of  constructing  storage  reservoirs  to  impound  flood  waters  of 
the  Yakima  river  to  provide  one  thousand  five  hundred  cubic  feet  of  water  per 
second  of  time  at  the  Reservation  gates  for  the  irrigation  of  one  hundred  and  twen 
ty  thousand  acres,  more  or  less,  on  the  Yakima  Indian  Reservation  *  *  *  to 
be  expended  in  said  works  by  the  Reclamation  Service." 

While  this  appropriation  is  not  reimbursable  from  the  Yakima 
tribal  fund  (which  for  the  fiscal  year  1912  was  $35.11),  the  import  of 
the  bill  is  to  destroy  the  riparian  rights  of  the  Indian  and  the  appro 
priation  of  1000  cubic  feet  by  Agent  Lynch,  and  to  clinch  forever  the 
Reclamation's  hold  on  the  Reservation.  There  is,  however,  a  provis 
ion  wherein  "to  the  extent  of  thirty-two  thousand  acres,  estimated 
to  be  necessary  for  the  support  of  Indians  allotted  within  the  pro 
ject,  for  which  a  water  supply  of  four  hundred  cubic  feet  per  second 
of  time  is  required,  shall  receive  water  free  of  any  and  all  cost  of 
said  storage  works." 

This  estimate  is  based  upon  the  computation  of  four  hundred  In 
dian  families  within  the  radius  of  the  proposed  irrigation  system, 
with  four  members  to  the  family,  or  1,600  all  told.  This  is  "free 
water"  for  twenty  acres  for  each  Indian,  and  all  the  other  land  must 
remain  dry,  or  pay  for  water  at  whatever  price  the  Reclamation  Serv 
ice  is  pleased  to  impose.  Seemingly,  Mr.  Jones  and  the  "system" 
could  not  get  away  from  the  twenty-acre  conspiracy  of  March  6,  1906. 
How  unfortunate  that  the  government  was  not  possessed  of  this  * '  dis 
criminating  talent"  in  determining  the  actual  "needs"  of  the  Yaki 
mas,  when  the  original  allotments  were  made  in  1894. 

The  bill  was, passed  upon  by  the  Committee  on  Indian  Affairs,  and 
referred  to  Secretary  Fisher  for  approval.  Mr.  Fisher  in  his  recom 
mendations  on  this  bill  to  the  committee,  June  13,  1912,  after  review 
ing  the  water  situation  in  the  Yakima  valley,  and  the  limitation  in 
1905, of  the  Reservation  waters  to  147  cubic  feet,  says: 

"After  careful  consideration  I  am  of  opinion  that  this  limitation  was  too  nar 
row,  and  that  equitably  there  should  have  been  reserved  to  the  Indians  by  author 
ity  of  the  treaty  *  *  *  a  sufficient  flow  of  water  to  irrigate  an  area  of  land 
large  enough  to  furnish  each  Indian  family  with  a  farm  adequate  for  its  support. 
Such  a  farm  would  be  practically  worthless  in  an  arid  country  without  sufficient 
water  to  irrigate  it." 

He  further  states  that  any  attempt  to  recognize  the  Indians'  claim 
to  the  low  water  flow  in  excess  of  147  cubic  feet  will  result  in  con- 


44 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 

fusion  and  litigation ;  hence  the  needs  of  the  Indians  should  be  sup 
plied  by  storage  free  of  cost,  "  which  is  the  purpose  of  the  pending 
bill." 

Mr.  Fisher  recommends  that  the  appropriation  carry  $1,800,000, 
and  that  "the  bill  should  provide  that  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior 
shall  designate  the  particular  32,000  acres  that  are  to  receive  water 
without  construction  charge  for  storage." 

When  it  is  remembered  that  32,000  acres  within  the  Wapato  canal 
zone  are  now  under  irrigation,  of  which  24,000  acres  belong  to  allot 
tees,  and  is,  in  any  event  justly  entitled  to  water  under  the  laws  of 
appropriation  and  usage;  this  munificent  gift  of  "free  storage  water " 
becomes  so  luminous  as  to  be  almost  indiscernable. 

There  is  no  provision  for  the  distributing  system  and  drainage  sys 
tem  contingent  to  the  Wapato  Project,  but  the  bill  stipulates  that 
these  are  to  be  paid  for  on  "such  terms  as  may  be  fixed  by  the  Sec 
retary  of  the  Interior. " 

Simultaneous  with  his  report  on  the  Jones  bill,  Mr.  Fisher  paid  his 
long  delayed  respects  to  Mr.  Stephens'  Joint  Resolution  No.  250. 


YAKIMA    TRIBAL   WEDDING   SCENE,    1911. 

Bridal  Party  Arriving  with  Gifts. 

(Copyrighted  by  the  Author.) 

While  admitting  that  under  the  treaty  of  1855  the  Yakima  Reserva 
tion  is  riparian  to  the  Yakima  river,  he  attacks  this  resolution;  con 
tending  that  the  limitations  and  settlements  of  the  Yakimas'  right  to 
water  for  irrigation  by  the  government  in  1905  was  done  authori 
tatively  and 

"Upon  the  faith  of  this  limitation  and  these  agreements  large  sums  of  public 
ami  private  money  have  been  expended  in  irrigation  and  irrigation  \vmk-  which 
would  be  greatly  jeopardized  if  the  said  limitation  is  successfully  attacked. 

"It  is  believed/'  he  continues,  "that  the  Secretary,  as  an  incident  to  hN  admin 
istrative  power  over  the  Indians  and  the  public  lands  reserved  for  them,  may  fix 
the  maximum  quantity  of  water  necessary  for  the  use  of  the  Indians  and  which 
should  be  equitably  reserved  for  their  future  use,  and  may  authori/.e  appropriation 
by  others  of  the  unused  flow  in  excess  of  that  maximum.  Such  limitations  of  the 
amount  of  water  reserved  for  future  use  by  the  Indians  without  present  bem-lii-ial 
use  have  been  made  in  the  past  and  I  am  «>f  the  opinion  that  the  power  to  make 
tin-in  exists.  *  *  * 

"I  am  of  the  opinion  that  the  institution  of  any  proceedings  whit-h  would  deny 
the  legal  basis  of  the  Department's  action  in  limiting  the  Indian  wati-r  rights  «>r 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


45 


would  deny  authority  in  any  Secretary  to  make  reasonable  limitations  of  this 
character  would  be  contrary  to  public  interests.  Upon  the  contrary,  Congress 
should  set  at  rest  all  doubt  as  to  such  authority  in  all  cases  subject  to  Congres 
sional  action  by  passing  an  act  expressly  conferring  such  authority  upon  the 
Secretary." 

The  Secretary  also  acknowledges  the  inadequacy  of  the  water  set 
aside  in  1905  for  the  Yakimas;  but  argues  that  the  deficiency  "should 
be  supplied  by  storage  at  public  expense,"  and  that  "Senator  Jones 
has  introduced  a  bill  for  that  purpose." 

Here  is  an  anomaly,  grave,  yet  ludicrous.  Mr.  Fisher,  after  twice 
conceding  the  injustice  of  Secretary  Hitchcock's  ruling,  sedately  re 
quests  that  "Congress  set  at  rest  all  doubt  as  to  such  authority."  Is 

it  possible  that  this  Secre-    ^_ 

tary,  with  his  anti-Indian  %  \  H 

proclivities,      deems      his  J  \ 

mythical  "sop"  of  .  free 
storage  for  thirty-two 
thousand  acres  an  evi 
dence  of  infallible  justice 
in  the  present  depart 
mental  control  of  the  na 
tion's  wards,  and  that  the 
precedent  he  thus  estab 
lishes  will  govern  the  ac 
tions  of  his  successors? 
If  "gall"  is  a  requisite  to 
office  tenure,  surely  is 
Secretary  Fisher  entitled 
to  a  life  term. 

From  a  letter  written  by  Indian  Commissioner  Robert  G.  Valentine 
to  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  March  15,  1912,  it  would  appear  that 
the  Indian  Office  has  changed  base  and  will  contend  for  enough  free 
water  to  irrigate  all  the  Yakima  Indian  lands;  and  that  the  distribut 
ing  system  be  constructed 
under  the  supervision  of 
the  Indian  Department, 
which  is  compatible  with 
the  Yakimas'  petition  of 
April  6,  1911. 

Pending  the  Jones  bill 
and  the  suppression  of 
Stephens'  H.  J.  Resolu 
tion,  the  Yakimas  were 
.  not  wholly  idle.  Wild 
Eye,  the  Fleet  Footed, 
again  hit  the  night  trail, 
but  owing  to  the  unfor 
tunate  discord  among  the 
clans  of  the  tribe,  caused 
by  that  fake  organization, 

(Braden.) 


YAH' -YA- TOSH.  Ancient   Grave. 

Yakima   Indian   Reservation,    1912. 

(Copyrighted   by    the    Author.) 


46 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 

"The  Brotherhood  of  North  American  Indians," 

which  was  launched  by  a  few  mercenary  "clam  lawyers"  during  the 
winter  of  1911-12,  the  Indians  could  not  be  united  in  a  general  coun 
cil.  The  "Brotherhood"  following  was  lured  to  false  security  and 
blinded  by  the  extravagant  promises  of  their  "Great  Sachem,"  Rich 
ard  C.  Adams,  notorious  in  the  late  McMurry  Oklahoma  Indian  con 
tracts  scandal,  who,  they  declared,  "will  look  after  our  interests  and 
is  pledged  to  kill  the  Jones  bill  as  soon  as  it  is  brought  up."  This 
promise  was  a  trap.  The  "Great  Sachem"  played  traitor.  It  is 
alleged  that  he  refused  to  protest  against  the  Jones  bill.  If  it  passed, 
he  held  contracts  from  the  Yakimas  and  would  '  *  enter  suit  to  recover 
damages  on  percentage." 

The  Jones  bill  was  incorporated  in  the  general  Indian  Appropria 
tion  bill  and  as  Senator  Curtis  of  Kansas,  member  of  committee  on 
Indian  Affairs,  had  declared  his  intention  to  oppose  new  legislation 
on  the  Indian  Appropriation  Bill,  to  him,  in  the  absence  of  Tecumseh, 
Yakatowit,  head  chief  of  the  anti-brotherhood  faction,  on  June  2, 
1912,  Louis  Mann,  as  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Yakima  Indian 
Council,  and  Clan  Chief  We-yallup  Wayacika,  as  Chief  Judge  of  the 
Tribal  Court,  in  the  name  of  their  tribe  wired  a  remonstrance  against 
the  Jones  bill.  They  also  urged  "Pass  House  Resolution  250  and  set 
tle  dispute  forever. " 

This  was  followed  by  a  letter,  giving  a  brief  summary  of  their 
wrongs : 

"In  the  name  of  our  Tribe  of  Yakima  Indians,"  they  said,  "we  protest  against 
Senate  Bill  6693.  It  is  grossly  unjust,  depriving  us  of  water  rights  which  are 
ours  by  all  that  is  equity  between  man  and  man.  *  *  * 

"In  1906  Secretary  Hitchcock  divide  water  in  Yakima  River  and  give  us  147  cubic 
feet  and  give  Sunnyside  Canal  650  feet,  leaving  several  miles  of  our  new  ditch  dry; 
and  not  enough  to  water  good  the  30,000  acres  watered  by  our  ditches. 

"We  ask  if  this  is  right? 

"Our  riparian  rights  are  older  than  those  of  the  white  man.  This  Reservation 
we  were  permitted  to  hold  when  the  Government  took  all  our  other  land.  \Yator 
is  life  and  belongs  to  the  earth.  Our  land  is  poor  without  water.  The  Govern 
ment  has  set  still  and  let  our  water  be  stolen,  and  now  the  Reclamation  Service 
cinch  us  tight  if  Jones  Bill  6693  becomes  law.  The  Reclamation  Service  talk 
two  ways;  it  said  water  under  Tieton  Project  only  cost  $60.00  or  $63.00  acre,  but 
it  cost  $93.00  acre.  *  *  *  White  man  is  better  farmer  than  Indian.  Indian 
only  understands  horses  and  cattle.  Reclamation  (Service)  make  high  cost  wat.-r: 
high  cost  drainage;  Indian  cannot  pay  and  land  be  sold  from  him.  This  is  what 
white  man  want.  *  * 

"On  Ahtanum  River  divide  of  our  Reservation  where  white  man  have  most 
land,  the  Secretary  of  Interior  gives  three-fourths  of  water  to  white  man.  Now 
when  red  man  have  most  land  to  water,  he  gives  nearly  all  water  to  white  man. 
This  was  done  and  we  could  not  help  ourselves.  We  want  only  what  is  right. 
God  wants  the  white  man  and  the  red  man  to  live  in  peace.  We  try  hard  to  do 
right  and  obey  the  white  man's  laws.  We  want  you  to  help  us.  *  *  * 

"We  want  you  to  stop  Jones  Bill  and  make  law  the  Resolution  250.  Then 
Atty.  General  will  settle  all  justly.  If  this  is  not  done  we  are  bringing  suit  in 
U.  S.  Court  to  settle  our  water  rights.  We  want  the  white  man  to  be  honest 
and  treat  us  right.  Our  words  are  done."  (See  Note  11.) 

NOTE  11. — This  protest  is  set  forth  in  "Memorial  of  the  Yakima  Tribe  of  Indians 
Protesting  A&ainst  Senate  Bill  6693"  in  Document  No.  1304.  House  of  Representatives, 
presented  by  Mr.  Stephens  of  Texas.  Jan.  25.  1913. 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 47 

A  copy  of  this  letter  was  also  mailed  to  Chairman  Stephens.  Sen 
ator  Curtis  failed  to  oppose  the  Jones  bill,  which  was  passed  by  the 
Senate,  and  referred  back  to  the  House  conference.  The  protest  to 
Mr.  Stephens  was  more  effective.  The  conference  struck  out  this  ap 
propriation,  and  provided  legislation  authorizing  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  to  present  all  available  information  on  the  subject  to  the 
present  Congress.  As  this,  however,  merely  requires  Mr.  Fisher  to 
"investigate"  and  "report"  upon  his  own  methods,  within  his  own 
system,  the  sequel  is  foreshadowed. 

From  the  first  there  was  little  or  no  hope  that  the  Stephens  resolu 
tion  would  become  law.  Indeed,  it  is  doubtful  if  such  legislation  is 
necessary,  as  the  Attorney  General  is  vested  with  full  power  to  insti 
tute  and  maintain  such  suits.  His  office  has  declared  its  eagerness  to 
protect  the  Indians  and  "stands  ready  to  act  promptly  so  soon  as  it 
shall  have  received  final  advices  and  recommendations  from  the  In 
terior  Department." 

It  is  safe  to  preduct  that  if  such  "advice  and  recommendations" 
are  necessary  to  action,  they  will  not  be  forthcoming  from  the  pres 
ent  head  of  the  Interior  Department. 

As  a  last  forlorn  hope,  the  Yakimas  have  submitted  an  appeal  to 
the  Attorney  General  to  institute  suit  for  the  recovery  of  their  stolen 


INDIANS   DRYING   SALMON. 
White  Salmon  River,   Wash.,   1912. 


water  rights ;  and  if  this  supplication  is  ignored,  some  of  the  tribes 
men  have  declared  their  intention  to  bring  suit  under  the  Act  of  Feb. 
6,  1901,  (Statutes  L.  760),  which  grants  an  allottee  in  such  case  the 
privilege  of  appeal  to  the  courts.  This  will  precipitate  the  long- 
dreaded  litigation,  which,  it  is  hoped  will  culminate  in  a  congressional 
investigation.  "Well  may  the  Reclamation  venals  quail  at  the  pros 
pective  exposure  of  brigandage  and  loot  so  long  suffered  by  the  de 
pendent  Yakimas.  That  the  Indian  Department,  at  the  time  and  sub- 


48 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 

sequent  to  the  theft  of  the  Reservation  waters  in  1905,  realized  that 
an  injustice  had  been  done  the  Yakimas,  is  attested  in  the  following : 

"Department  of  the  Interior,  ^ 

"Office  of  Indian  Affairs,  Washington,  September  28,  1906.      j 
"Louis  Mann, 

"North  Yakima,  Washington. 

"(through  the  Superintendent  of  the  Yakima  Agency.) 
"My  Friend: 

"In  a  letter  dated  August  18,  1906,  you  presented  the  troubles  the 
Yakima  Indians  are  experiencing  relative  to  the  use  of  water  for  irrigation  pur 
poses,  and  you  want  to  know  what  rights  such  Indians  have. 

"In  answer,  I  am  wholly  unable  to  tell  you  what  will  be  the  ultimate  result  of 
the  trouble  over  this  question.  It  is  believed  that  the  Indians  have  a  right  to 
sufficient  water  to  irrigate  their  allotted  lands,  but  there  is  not  enough  water  for 
the  needs  of  all  who  are  dependent  on  the  streams  from  which  the  Indians  must 
take  their  supply.  As  you  are  aware  there  is  an  effort  on  foot  to  harmonize  these 
conflicting  claims,  and  it  is  earnestly  hoped  that  something  will  be  done  in  the  near 
future  by  which  the  Indians  will  get  a  recognized  right  to  a  sufficient  amount  of 
water  for  their  needs. 

"Very  respectfully, 

"C.  F.  LARRABEE, 

"Acting  Commissioner." 

At  the  Thirtieth  Annual  Conference  of  Friends  of  Indians  and  Oth 
er  Dependent  Peoples,  held  at  Lake  Mohonk,  N.  Y.,  Oct.  25,  1912 : 

Mr.  S.  M.  Brosius,  Agent  for  the  Indian  Bights  Association,  read 
an  able  paper  reviewing  the  Yakima  water  rights  situation,  giving  ci 
tations  wherein  the  courts  had,  in  similar  cases  ruled  favorably  for 
the  Indians.  The  want  of  space  alone  prevents  me  from  giving  this 
paper  in  full.  However,  it  will  be  found  in  the  Annual  Report,  1912, 
of  the  society  above  mentioned. 

After  Mr.  Brosius '  address,  the  conference  approved  as  a  part  of  its 
declaration  of  principles  the  following  paragraph : 

"In  providing  water  for  irrigation  for  the  lands  of  the  Yakima  and  other  Indian 
tribes  the  Government  is  in  duty  bound  to  protect  their  vested  and  treaty  rights 
to  as  full  an  extent  as  would  be  done  in  cases  between  citizens.  We  recommend 
that,  whenever  practicable,  proceedings  should  be  instituted  by  the  Government 
to  procure  a  judicial  determination  of  the  Indian  rights." 


Since  going  to  press,  Mr.  Jones,  under  date  of  January  21,  1913, 
introduced  in  the  U.  S.  Senate  as  an  amendment  to  the  current  Indian 
Appropriation  Bill,  H.  R.  26874,  providing  $1,800,000  for  the  con 
struction  by  the  Reclamation  Service  of  storage  water  reservoirs  for 
the  "Wapato  Project,  on  practically  the  same  conditions  as  his  former 
Bill  6693 ;  except  that  in  the  new  bill  eighty  per  centum  of  the  allot 
ted,  and  a  like  per  centum  of  deeded  lands  within  the  Wapato  unit 
must  be  pledged  for  the  cost  of  the  work,  and  all  other  claims  to  a 
water  right  must  be  waived  before  any  part  of  the  work  will  be  com 
menced. 

There  is,  however,  in  addition  to  the  twenty-acre  free  water  right 
to  each  allottee,  a  "sop"  held  out  to  the  owners  of  lands  to  which 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


49 


the  Indian  title  has  been  extinguished,  wherein  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  shall  "equitably  adjust"  their  claims  to  a  water  right. 

Secretary  Fisher,  true  to  our  prediction,  stands  firmly  by  his  for 
mer  position  and  strongly  recommends  the  passage  of  the  pending 
bill,  which  has  been  recommended  by  the  Senate  committee  on  Indian 
Affairs.  Both  allottees  and  white  owners — the  latter  through  the 
Reservation  Water  Users  Association — of  lands  within  the  Wapato 
unit  have  protested  against  the  bill  in  question,  and  have  asked  that 
the  Department  of  Justice  settle  through  the  courts  the  Reservation's 
contention  for  prior  rights  to  the  waters  of  the  Yakima  river. 

This  is  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  Reservation  that  the 
white  residents  have  ever  raised  their  voice  against  any  legislation 
that  looks  to  the  despoiling  of  the  Indians.  At  the  last  moment,  and 
when  almost  too  late,  they  realize  that  their  threatened  water  right 
interests,  at  least,  are  mutual,  and  that  they  have  been  deceived  as  to 
the  actual  intents  of  the  United  States  Reclamation  Service. 


50 


THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 


THE  CHALLENGE. 
WAH-NOK-PI,    THE   YAKIMA— "A   Dream    of   the   Past. 


Cfje  Protfjerijoofc  of  Jlortf) 
American  Snbtans 

* 

In  November,  1911, 
there  suddenly  ap 
peared  on  the  Yakima 
Indian  Reservation  the 
Hon.  Harve  H.  Phipps, 

~W  *'.*8f-i?s  *fl$t^    s<  BF     'WjA  attorney     of     Spokane, 

*£$>  fia  Washington,     who     os 

tensibly  promulgated 
the  banding  of  all  the 
nation's  wards  into  one 
great  faction,  "The 
Brotherhood  of  North 
American  Indians."  He 
unfolded  a  plan  by 
which  "good,  honest" 
attorneys,  regularly  em 
ployed  on  percentage, 
would  protect,  in  the 
halls  of  Congress  and 
the  courts  of  justice, 
not  only  the  jeopar 
dized  water  rights  of 
the  Yakimas,  but  all 
treaty  guarantees 

wherein  the  government  has  proven  recreant  to  its  trust.  The  time 
for  such  a  movement  was  most  opportune.  The  very  atmosphere  of 
the  Reservation  was  redolent  with  trouble  and  many  of  the  Yakimas 
were  quite  ready  to  listen  to  the  extravagant  promises  held  out  by  the 
glib  stranger.  So  cunning  were  his  words  that  one  faction  went  wild 
over  the  prospect  of  restored  Indian  rights.  They  eagerly  signed  the 
iron  clad  "power  of  attorney  and  fee  agreement"  produced  by  the 
wily  lawyer,  wherein  he  and  Richard  C.  Adams  of  Washington,  D.  C., 
conspicuous  in  the  $3,000,000  Oklahoma  McMurry  Indian  contracts 
swindle,  are  to  conduct  all  legal  transactions,  individual  and  tribal, 
on  a  percentage  basis. 

Chiefs  Stwire  G.  Waters,  Saluskin  We-owikt,  Lesh-hi-hit  and  Alex 
Teio,  with  Thomas  Yallup  and  Nealy  N.  Olney  as  interpreters,  were 


"Lurks   in   Ambush   Along   the   Trail. 


52 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 

chosen  as  delegates  to  Washington  where  the  Brotherhood  would  be 
completely  organized. 

At  the  Capitol,  under  the  guidance  of  the  Hon.  Phipps,  the  Yaki- 
mas,  with  delegates  from  other  tribes,  met  Mr.  Adams,  who  blinded 
them  with  absurd  visions  of  retrieved  tribal  power  and  political  pres 
tige.  He  held  out  to  them  the  lure  of  controlling  the  ballot  in  seven 
teen  states  and  dictating  the  election  of  34  senators  and  70  represent 
atives.  To  accomplish  this  "the  tribes  must  stand  as  one,"  and  to 
this  end  Mr.  Adams  organized  his  "Brotherhood  of  North  American 
Indians/'  with  himself  as 

"Great  Sachem." 

This  momentous  event  was  heralded  to  the  western  tribes  in  a 
pompous  telegram  signed  by  the  Hon.  Phipps,  "attorney  for  the  In 
dians,  ' '  stating  in  part : 

"Brotherhood  of  North  American  Indians  completely  organized.  The  convention, 
by  unanimous  vote,  elected  Richard  Adams  of  this  city  as  Great  Sachem,  Joseph 
Craig  of  Oregon  as  Great  Secretary.  Brotherhood  memorials  presented  to  President 
and  to  Congress  this  morning.  Indian  Commissioner  approves  of  movement." 

The  constitution  of  the  Brotherhood  is  liberal.  Squaw  men,  sen 
ators,  congressmen,  judges  and  any  political  boss  with  the  prefix 
"Hon. "  may  join  as  honorary  members. 

The  Yakima  delegates  returned  home  elated.  They  gave  glowing 
accounts  of  the  power  and  wisdom  of  the  Great  Sachem — the  Moses  of 
the  Tribes,  the  Solomon  of  Councils.  By  the  mere  lifting  of  his 
weasel-skin  bedecked  grandfather's  cane,  the  insignia  of  his  office, 
Carnegie  had  been  induced  to  pledge  $750,000  for  the  purpose  of 
erecting  near  the  White  House  a  palatial  Council  Lodge  for  the 
Brotherhood.  The  Great  Sachem  would  reside  there  and  keep  watch 
over  Congress  and  the  Indian  Department.  There  would  be  no  more 
Jones  bills  to  despoil  them  of  lands,  water  and  tribal  money.  The 
Yakimas  could  now  work  their  ranches,  roam  the  mountains,  hunt 
and  fish  with  no  concern  for  the  future.  They  had  empowered  the 
Mighty  Sachem  to  care  for  their  interests.  He  would  compel  the  gov 
ernment  to  recognize  and  redress  their  many  wrongs.  Ancient  tribal 
glory  would  be  revived  and  the  Reservation  maintained  for  the  In 
dians  only.  Free  water  for  irrigation  purposes,  the  immediate  distri 
bution  of  vast  sums  of  tribal  moneys,  unmolested  hunting  on  the  pub 
lic  domain,  the  protection  of  their  fast  disappearing  berry  patches 
and  root  areas  and  the  restoration  of  the  Columbia  river  salmon  fish 
eries  were  the  part  to  be  achieved  by  the  Great  Sachem  and  the 
Brotherhood. 

The  Indian  Millenium  Was  Dawning. 

With  such  lure,  about  500  Yakimas,  many  of  them  children,  joined 
the  Brotherhood,  while  perhaps  100  signed  the  power  of 
attorney  contracts.  At  the  solicitation  of  the  Great  Sachem, 
Chief  Saluskin  We-ouikt,  with  Interpreter  Yallup,  made  a  sec 
ond  trip,  to  Washington,  and  after  the  annual  "Feast  of 
the  New  Food."  the  following  spring,  the  Chief,  with  Alex 


BROTHERHOOD  OF  NORTH  AMERICAN  INDIANS.  53 

Teio  and  Harvey  Schuster,  again  returned.  In  all  eleven  pas 
sages  to  the  Capital  and  return  were  made  by  these  delegates,  the 
entire  cost  amounting  to  about  $3,300,  being  defrayed  by  subscription 
among  the  Brotherhood  following,  many  of  whom  were  in  penury. 
To  raise  this  money,  guns,  horses,  saddles  and  other  property  was 
pawned,  never  to  be  redeemed.  No  good  came  of  these  expensive 
junketings.  On  the  other  score,  the  delegates  came  home  with  minds 
confused  and  warped  by  the  romantic  promises  made  by  the  forked- 
tongued  Sachem.  It  was  schemed  by  Adams  to  ensnare  all  the  tribe, 
but  unfortunately  for  his  purpose,  there  were  a  few  who  refused  to 
be  "sweetened"  by  his  words.  They  saw  the  stupendous  graft  con 
cealed  in  the  signed  contracts ;  and  the  Brotherhood  was  only  a 
"blanket  blind"  to  beguile  them  to  certain  financial  ruin.  It  was 
suspected  that  the  move  was  fostered  in  the  interests  of  the  "sys 
tem."  To  this  body,  the  Yakima  had  become  too  obstreperous;  his 
cry  must  be  hushed.  The  word  "Brotherhood"  was  insidious,  mag 
ical.  Like  the  wing  of  the  vampire  vibrating,  it  would  cool  the  wound 
and  soothe  the  victim  while  his  life  blood  was  being  slowly  but  surely 
drained.  So  baleful  was  the  influence  of  the  Great  Sachem,  that  in 
midwinter,  Mr.  S.  A.  M.  Young,  the  Superintendent  of  the  Agency, 
advised  the  Indians  against  his  machinations.  The  Anti-Brotherhood 
faction  was  early  aroused  to  the  danger  and  on  January  27,  1912, 
sent  the  following  protest  to  the  Indian  Commissioner,  signed  by 
Chief  Weya]lup  Wayacika  and  fifty  other  Indians,  Louis  Mann,  Sec 
retary  of  Council : 

PETITION. 

Yakima  Indian  (Res.),  Wash.  | 

White  Swan,  Jan.  23,   1912.         } 
The  Honorable,  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs, 

Washington,  D.  O. 

Sir:  We,  the  undersigned,  members  of  the  Yakima  Tribes  of  Indians,  hereby 
protest  against  the  power  of  attorney  a.nd  contract  and  assignments  which  Harve 
H.  Phipps,  of  Spokane,  Wash.,  and  Richard  C.  Adams,  of  Washington,  D.  C.,  have 
been  inducing  members  of  our  tribes  to  sign  since  we  believe  the  activity  of  these 
parties  has  been  solely  for  the  amount  of  money  they  can  get  out  of  it.  Further 
more  we  wish  to  state  that  we  do  not  have  confidence  in  the  brotherhood  which 
these  men  are  trying  to  organize  among  ourselves  and  other  Indians,  believing  that 
such  organization  is  for  a  selfish  purpose.  We  further  request  that  the  Indian 
Office  send  out  word  to  other  tribes  of  Indians  in  the  United  States  warning 
them  of  these  people." 

On  March  18,  1912,  this  faction  elected  as  "Head  Chief  of  all  the 
Confederated  Tribes  of  the  Yakimas,"  Tecumseh  Yakatowit.  This 
"revolution  by  ballot"  was  silently  ignored  by  Chief  Waters  and  his 
following.  The  tribe  was  hopelessly  divided — a  point  gained  for  the 
"system." 

So-Called  Carnegie  Donation  a  Fraud. 

But  a  day  of  reckoning  was  coming.  The  charge  of  the  Great 
Sachem's  treachery  in  not  opposing  the  passage  of  the  Jones  Bill  No. 
6693  was  disclosed  to  his  followers.  The  alarm  spread  over  the  Reser 
vation,  and  membership  to  the  Brotherhood  at  one  dollar  a  head 
ceased.  The  unused  "power  of  attorney"  blanks  left  by  the  Hon. 


54 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS. 

Phipps  to  be  filled  in  and  signed,  were  destroyed.  Frank  Meaeham. 
a  Carlisle  Yakima,  hurried  to  the  Warm  Springs  and  successfully 
warned  that  tribe.  Rumors  from  the  East  repudiated  the  Carnegie 
donation,  and  it  devolved  upon  Louis  Mann  and  Chief  Weyallup  Wa- 
yacika,  the  Watch  Dogs  of  their  Tribe,  to  confirm  this  report.  They 
wrote  Mr.  Carnegie  as  follows : 

"Yakima  Indian  General  Council,  | 

"Yakima  Indian  Reservation,  Washington,  June  1,  1912.  f 
"Mr.  Andrew  Carnegie, 

"New  York. 
"Our  Friend: 

"We  are  in  the  dark  and  ask  you  to  show  us  light.  When  our  delegates 
were  in  Washington,  D.  C.,  last  winter  they  were  told  you  subscribed  $750,000 
to  build  Council  Lodge  for  Brotherhood  of  North  American  Indians.  Now  report 
from  east  to  our  adopted  brother  and  Tribal  Historian,  L.  V.  McWhorter,  that  you 
never  agree  to  give  this  money.  We  do  not  like  crooked  talk  and  we  write  you  first 
that  we  may  learn  truth.  We  trust  you  will  let  us  hear  from  you  soon. 

His 

X       "WE-YALLUP      WA-YA-CI-KA, 
Mark. 

"Clan  Chief  Ahtanum  Yakimas 
"Chief  Judge  of  Yakima  Tribal  Court." 
"LOUIS  MANN, 

"Corresponding  Secretary  Indian  Council." 

"Skibo  Castle,  Southland,  June  25,  1912. 
"Mr.  Louis  Mann, 

"Corresponding  Secretary  Yakima   Indian  Council. 
"Dear  Sir: 

"Yours  of  June  1st  received.  There  is  no  truth  whatever  in  the  report 
that  Mr.  Carnegie  has  provided  $750,000,  or  any  other  sum,  with  which  to  build  a 
council  lodge  for  the  Brotherhood  of  North  American  Indians. 

"Very  truly  yours, 

"JAMES  BERTRAM, 

"Private  Secretary." 

The  power  of  the  Great  Sachem's  "Tamanawash"  was  waning. 
His  fake  Brotherhood  was  tottering  and  to  bolster  the  crumbling 
fabric,  he  seized  upon  the  golden  opportunity  afforded  in  the  recent 
ruling  of  the  Indian  Department,  ordering  a  more  liberal  disburse 
ment  of  the  allottees'  individual  moneys,  and  heralded  among  the 
Yakimas  and  other  Western  tribes,  the  following 

Bombastic  Proclamation. 

"Washington,  D.  C.,  September  14th,  1912. 
"To  the  members  of  the  Brotherhood  of  North  American  Indians  and  to  all  othei 

Indians  whom  it   may   ecu  ern: 

"After  much  work  and  many  persistent  efforts  the  Brotherhood  of  North  Amer 
ican  Indians  has  succeeded  in  getting  an  order  issued  by  the  Department  of  the 
Interior,  granting  all  Indians  a  more  liberal  use  of  their  individual  moneys  de 
posited  in  various  banks  throughout  the  country  and  belonging  to  individual  In 
dians  from  rentals  on  their  lands,  sales  of  inherited  lands  and  timber,  and  limn 
other  sources. 

"While  the  present  order,  a  copy  of  which  is  enclosed,  is  not  as  liberal  as  was 
expected,  or  is  desired  by  the  Indians,  it  is  far  better,  and  will  give  the  Indian- 
the  use  of  more  of  their  own  money  than  ever  before  and  is  a  step  towards  the 
progress  that  the  Brotherhood  was  founded  to  accomplish.  We  have  been  beset 


BROTHERHOOD  OF  NORTH  AMERICAN  INDIANS.  55 

by  many  diificulties  while  securing  this  order;  the  President  and  many  of  his 
friends  and  Senators  and  Representatives  in  Congress  endorsed  the  more  liberal 
use  by  Indians  of  their  moneys  and  we  have  received  hundreds  of  telegrams  and 
letters  from  the  Indians  urging  prompt  action.  Great  credit  is  due  the  adminis 
tration  of  President  Taft  for  this  liberal  order  and  it  is  certain  that  the  order 
would  not  have  been  issued  for  several  months  if  the  administration  had  not  been 
thoroughly  convinced  of  our  sincerely  and  earnest  purpose  in  making  our  demands, 
and  the  equity  and  justice  of  our  cause.  In  addition,  we  have  been  promised 
that  if  the  Indians  make  good  use  of  the  moneys  paid  out  under  the  order  more 
liberal  treatment  will  be  given  in  the  near  future  and  all  Indians  will  eventually 
be  allowed  to  have  entire  control  of  their  individual  funds. 

"It  is  hoped  that  a  large  delegation  .will  be  here  on  the  6th  of  December,  1912, 
from  all  reservations  and  Indian  settlements  in  the  United  States;  at  that  time 
we  hope  to  pass  resolutions  and  take  actions  that  will  result  not  only  in  obtain 
ing  what  we  are  entitled  to  in  the  matter  of  our  individual  moneys,  but  that  will 
result  in  obtaining  for  our  people,  the  Indians  of  North  America,  more  liberty, 
justice  and  personal  rights  now  accorded  to  all  other  persons,  but  withheld  from 
the  foundation  of  the  Government  from  the  Indian  people. 

"We  feel  sure  that  by  close  co-operation  and  help  that  can  be  extended  by  one 
tribe  to  another  will  result  in  greater  progress,  advancement,  uplifting  and  the 
final  and  complete  liberation  of  our  people. 

"As  Great  Sachem  of  the  Brotherhood  of  North  American  Indians,  I  want  as 
many  letters  as  I  can  get  from  all  Indians,  whether  members  of  the  Brotherhood 
or  not,  expressing  the  views  of  our  people  relative  to  the  best  course  to  pursue 
for  our  elevation,  advancement  and  success;  and  I  want  these  letters  addressed 
to  me  authorizing  me  to  speak  to  the  President  and  to  other  persons  in  author 
ity,  so  that,  if  necessary,  they  can  be  used  in  a  memorial  to  the  President  and 
Congress  for  the  benefit  of  all  Indian  people. 

"Fraternally  yours, 
"RICHARD  C.  ADAMS,  Great  Sachem." 

The  claim  of  the  self-created  Sachem  to  the  honor  of  instigating 
and  bringing  about  a  long-delayed  reform  in  the  disbursement  of  In 
dian  moneys,  in  a  measure  restored  the  confidence  of  his  wavering 
followers.  Heeding  the  "Call  of  the  Allies,"  Chief  Waters  and  Teio, 
traveling  on  donated  funds,  again  struck  the  Trail  of  the  Rising  Sun, 
and  sat  in  the  Councils  of  the  Fakir  during  the  Moon  of  Snows. 

As  a  substance  of  fact  the  records  of  the  Lake  Mohonk  Confer 
ence,  1906,  shows  that  Mr.  S.  M.  Brosius  there  inaugurated  and  cham 
pioned  the  cause  in  question ;  since  which  time  the  Indian  Rights  As 
sociation  and  other  friends  of  the  Indians  have  constantly  pressed  the 
claim. 

Apropos  to  this  is  the  following  communication : 

"Department  of  the   Interior,  Office  of  Indian  Affairs, 

' 'Washington,   November   21,    1912. 
"Mr.  L.  V.  McWhorter, 

"North  Yakima,  Wash. 
"Dear  Sir— 

"Your  letter  of  the  llth  instant  is  received,  and  replying  thereto  desire  to 
state  that  from  my  personal  knowledge  Mr.  S.  M.  Brosius  has  for  some  time  past 
favored  a  more  liberal  policy  in  the  disbursement  of  Indian  moneys,  both  tribal 
and  individual,  and  advocated  such  in  his  address  before  the  Mohonk  Conference 
six  years  ago. 

"I  enclose  herewith  as  requested  copies  of  Indian  Office  circular  letters  of  Sep- 


56 THE  CRIME  AGAINST  THE  YAKIMAS.        

tember   11,    1912,   and   October    12.    1!)12,   respectively,    in<)(lit'\  IULT   previous    rc(|iiin> 
nients  in  the  disbursement  of  'individual  Indian  moneys.' 

"Very  respectfully. 

.TAMES  MCLAUGHLIN, 

'"Inspector." 

Again  is  the  Great  Sachem  branded  an  imposter  and  for  the  second 
time  have  the  Yakimas  followed  in  the  wake  of  this  false  prophet.  It 
is  certainly  incumbent  upon  the  Indian  Department  to  honor  the  re 
quest  of  the  Anti-Brotherhood  Council,  investigate  and  warn  all  the 
tribes  against  the  schemes  of  this  consummate  grafter,  who,  like  the 
deadly  Wahk'-puch,  lurks  in  ambush  along  the  trail  and  strikes  with 
poisoned  fang  the  unwary. 


To  be  Published  Within  the  Year 

Border  Warriors 


Embracing  the  Lives  of 

Jesse   Hughes   and   Other    Noted   Scouts 

of   Northwestern   Virginia,   With 

Illustrative  Anecdotes  by 

LUCULLUS    VIRGIL    McWHORTER 

Life  Member  of  the  Wisconsin  Historical  Society 

With  Preface  and  Additional  Notes  by 

WILLIAM  E.  CONNELLEY 

Author  of 

The  Provisional  Government  of  Nebraska,  Wyandot  Folklore, 
Life  of  Quantrill,  Doniphan's  Expedition  in  the  Con 
quest  of  New  Mexico  and  California,  Etc. 

This  work  represents  sixteen  years  of  labor,  and  is  the  first  pro 
duced  from  original  field  research  in  the  Trans-Alleghany,  since 
1831,  when  Withers  wrote  his  famous 

BORDER  WARFARE 

It  is  a  faithful,  non-partisan  record  of  an  incessant  conflict  be 
tween  the  red  and  white  warriors,  from  the  advent  of  the  pioneer 
on  the  upper  Monongahela  waters,  in  1768,  to  the  Battle  of  Fallen 
Timbers,  1794.  The  volume  will  be  illustrated  from  especially 
made  photographs;  completely  indexed,  and  will  contain  a  vast 
store  of  hitherto  unpublished  material,  replete  with  narratives  of 
personal  adventure,  incident  to  a 

LIFE  IN  THE  "GREAT  WOODS." 

The  manuscript  has  been  examined  by  a  prominent  American 
ist,  who  endorses  it  as  "One  of  the  best  pioneer  histories  ever 
written." 

Notice  will  be  given  of  publication. 


